Four Days in H E Double Broomsticks
by The QAS
Summary: A skiing trip takes a deadly turn, leaving four friends fighting for their lives.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi, it's me, again. I've been working on this story for a while, and I've been told it's one of my best. But I'll let you guys be the judge of that.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 1: <strong>

**Day 0**

"WHEEE!" the joyful screams of Lillian Luna Potter as she happily skied down the mountain. "Best Christmas EVER!" she cried.

"I concur," James said, pulling into the line for the ski lift.

Ever since the winter of 1999, when Hermione introduced skiing to her two best friends, they went every year. Even after they had kids, the Potters and Weasleys continued the tradition.

Albus grinned. "Come on!" he said to his friends, "let's get on the lift!"

"Too bad Hugo's missing out on all the fun," Rose said. She hesitated, and then added, "I think I'll rub it in his face once we get back to the hotel."

"That's so mean!" Roxanne said.

"Yeah, that's kind of the point!"

Fred's eyes widened in mock horror, "Rose," he scolded, "you know how to behave better than that! You ought to be ashamed of yourself."

Scorpius laughed so hard, that he didn't notice the large pile of snow he was skiing straight towards - - that is, until he fell in headfirst.

"You okay?" asked Rose, holding back a giggle. She stuck her hand out and the Slytherin gratefully took it. Twenty years ago, if you were to say that a Slytherin boy would gladly take the hand of a girl from a different house, just about anyone would laugh. But this was no joke. The friendship between Albus Potter, Rose Weasley, and Scorpius Malfoy was not only real, it was genuine.

The two cousins had only met Scorpius last year, but already, the three were inseparable.

Albus was the quietest one. Being the son of Harry Potter, he had quite a reputation to live up to. He was a talented artist and good with animals. Albus also suffered from ADHD, but despite his short attention span, Albus was usually fairly well behaved, that is, unless Scorpius sucked him into one of his pranks.

Scorpius, despite his heritage, was a good kid. The Slytherin boy was friendly and talkative- - almost everybody seemed to like him. He was also quick and slim- - which was good, because he was planning on trying out for the Slytherin quidditch team the following year. He inherited his father's looks for the most part, but his personality he got from his mother. Scorpius also had a great sense of humor, and rarely took anything too seriously.

Lastly, there was Rose. Rose Weasley had long, wavy auburn hair and large brown eyes. Even though she was in Ravenclaw, Rose hated to read - - in fact, she couldn't! Rose had Dyslexia, which made her school life quite difficult. If there was one thing Rose hated, it was injustice. She would often play devil's advocate with her friends, family, and teachers, just to make sure that the other side was heard. Her intentions were usually good, but her short temper and insubordinate attitude often landed her in trouble. But she was also very clever and could see things between the lines that few others could.

Their friendship led to a lot of controversy in the wizard world. How was it that despite their pasts this friendship could still thrive? Perhaps it was Albus's gentle hand, or Rose's ability to see different perspectives, or Scorpius's outgoing nature. Maybe it was a combination of all three, who knows? But in the end it wouldn't matter, because they would soon need each other more than ever.

And of course we cannot forget little Lily. Lily Luna Potter was Albus's little sister. She had red hair, blue eyes, and the face of an angel. At age ten, she was only the princess of the family, but also the baby (that is, if you didn't count Padfoot, the Potters' family dog.) Lily was hyper and jumpy, not unlike many girls her age. She often would use her cuteness to her advantage. Lily was an expert at puppy faces and could spontaneously burst into tears whenever she got into trouble.

"Hey, look at this!" Rose called. She then proceeded to ski sideways on the large piles of snow on either side of the run. She finished her trick with a perfect jump into the ski lift line.

"Show off," Albus grumbled.

"I heard that!"

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><p>"Do we <span>have<span> to go?" Lily whined, "couldn't we just stay for one more day?" She put on her best puppy face. "_Pweety pweeze_?"

"Sorry, Lil'," said Harry, "but school starts up again for the boys in just a couple of days."

"So what?" Lily said, "it starts for them, not for me." She put on a very serious poker face, "Tell you what, how about you go back with Albus and James, while Mummy and I stay here for a few more days. Then she could always apperate us home."

"But you always vomit whenever we apperate."

Lily hesitated, taking that into consideration. "That's a chance I'm willing to take," she decided.

"I have a better idea," Albus piped in, "how about Scorpius and me - - "

"Scorpius and I," Ginny corrected.

"Whatever. How 'bout Scorpius and I stay here for the night, while you guys all go home."

"Or," James said, "we could leave them here." He walked over to his brother, putting his arm around him and pretending to cry. "I'm going to miss you, bro."

James, a fourteen, was the oldest of Harry's children. He was loud and mischievous, truly living up to his grandfather's name.

Scorpius came up to the Potters. He was holding a large suitcase. "Excuse me, Mrs. Potter, where can I put this?"

"Now would you look at that," Ginny said, "Scorpius, you are the most polite boy I have ever met. Kids, you could learn something from Malfoy." _Wow,_ Ginny mused, _I never thought I would say that. _

"Albus will take them for you," Harry told him. "You're our guest, you shouldn't have to work."

Malfoy shrugged, "Oh, it's really no trouble, sir."

"He can pack for me," James offered.

Lily still hadn't given up her fight. She tugged on her mother's sleeve. "Can we at least ski down the mountain one last time before we leave? James could take us."

"Well . . . " Ginny hesitated, glancing at her husband thoughtfully. Harry nodded and the two came to a silent agreement, a few minutes couldn't hurt.

"Stay on the run."

"And come back soon," Harry added, "or Scorpius's father will have our necks!"

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><p>On their way to the ski run, they passed the Weasleys loading their car (or some of them, anyway. George and his kids had left a day earlier.)<p>

Rose waved to them. "I thought you were leaving," she said.

"We are," said Albus, "but our parents are letting us go down the mountain one last time."

Rose put her hands on her hips. "So basically, Lily put on a cutesy face, and your folks took pity on you."

"Pretty much," James agreed.

"Cool," Rose said, dropping her bag, "I'm in." She turned around and called, "MUM, DAD! I'M GOING TO SKI DOWN THE MOUNTAIN ONE LAST TIME WITH THE POTTERS," she hesitated, then added a bit smugly, "HUGO CAN PACK MY BAGS FOR ME. BYE!"

Ron and Hermione glanced at each other thoughtfully. "She's your child," Hermione decided.

Ron smiled sheepishly. " . . . So should I run after her or what?" he asked.

"Nah let her have fun."

That caused both Hugo and Ron to look at her oddly. "Mummy," Hugo said slowly, "are you feeling alright?"

"He's your child, too," Hermione said.

Hugo looked up at his parents hopefully, "Can I go skiing with them?"

"Sorry, Hugo."

"But that's not fair! I didn't get to ski this entire trip!"

"That's because you had high-altitude sickness. Next time drink more water."

"Whatever," Hugo mumbled, "I hate skiing, anyway."

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><p>"Why are you always so stiff around adults?" Albus asked Scorpius as he did a zigzag pattern down the mountain.<p>

"Easy," Scorpius said, narrowly missing a ditch, "if you act all polite to grown-ups, you can get away with almost anything. After all, who would expect sweet little Scorpius of super gluing the Hogwarts toilets?"

Rose scowled. "I knew that was you!"

"I'm surprised you didn't tell anyone," James said, "if I had pulled a prank that elaborate, I'd be bragging to everybody I knew."

Scorpius smirked. "See, that's the difference between us Slytherins and you Gryffindors. Gryfs like to blab about their work, and that's how they caught. Slytherins keep quiet. We don't mind if we don't get credit for our work; we just want the results. That's why we rarely get into trouble," he paused, and then added kind of haughtily, "We're just naturally superior that way."

"Not true!" James protested. "Gryffindors RULE!"

"Yeah!" his brother agreed.

Rose rolled her eyes. _Boys,_ she thought. It was almost amusing how they always fought over such trivial matters.

Suddenly, she stopped in her tracks. Rose sensed something was wrong. Something was very wrong. Everything was silent. She heard a slight cracking sound, and time seemed to stop for a moment. The ground began to tremble. It couldn't be . . . could it? She turned around and her worst fears were confirmed. "AVALANCHE!" she screamed.

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><p><strong>Just so that we're clear, this is NOT a romance. <strong>

**And before you guys all attack me for having them as friends, there is a reason why it could work. Children have an innocence that we lose as we get older. Even though they have different beliefs, I think the friendship could still thrive if they became close before they knew who they really were. Their ethics are different, but I think that's not too much of a problem. Think of it as an Israeli becoming friends with a Palestinian. And let's not forget that children have a natural rebellious nature.**

**There will be a story of their first year at Hogwarts, but for some reason I decided to publish this one first. **

**I know it starts out a bit slow, but I can assure you, it gets better. **

**Please review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Zarohk Korobase: Yes, same here. I did mean that, but it came out wrong. Jews and Muslims are friends all the time, I have a couple Muslim friends. Anyway, thank you for reminding me, I fixed it. **

**Masterofbugs123: Thank you!**

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><p><strong>Chapter 2:<strong>

**Day 1**

**16:07 PM**

The boys ceased to quibble. Lily got up from making snow angels. And Rose just stood there; petrified with fright.

"EVERYBODY TAKE COVER!" James screamed.

Then, everything went black. Or rather, white.

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><p>James woke up extremely cold. There was white around him on all sides. Was he dead? No, he couldn't be. He felt pain; dead people didn't feel pain, did they? James then realized in horror that he was in fact buried in the snow. <em>Merlin,<em> he thought. _I've been buried alive!_

He had to dig his way out, and quickly. But James couldn't figure out which direction was up and which one was down. What if he dug where he thought was up, but just ended up going even deeper?

What about the others? Were they okay? James felt a lump in his throat. He couldn't imagine returning to his parents without Albus, Rose, Lily, or even Scorpius. He would never be able to live with himself if that happened.

James sneezed. A large glob of snot came out and fell back on his face. It's strange to think that it was probably that very bogie that ended up saving his life. Since the snot fell back on his face, James knew that he must've been on his back. **(Survival tip: If you are ever caught in an avalanche and are buried under snow, spit to see which way is up.)**

James was able to dig his way out with some difficulty, but being fairly strong, (both physically and willed,) he was able to accomplish the feat, and dig his way out of what would have soon been his snowy grave.

He gasped for air, not realizing how little oxygen he had been receiving before.

His victory, however, was short lived. He soon remembered the others. How long had he been out? What if the others were already dead?

"James? James! JAMES!" he heard someone call.

It was Lily! "Lil'?" James answered, "Lily where are you?"

"We fell off the side and now we're in this ditch-thingy. Except it's not really a ditch because it goes off in one direction."

Wait, she said 'we'. "Lily, are the others with you?"

"Yes," said a different voice.

"Scorpius?"

James, although not able to see the boy, could tell that he was rolling his eyes at him. "Can you get out?"

"Honestly, James, use your brain: if we _could_ get out, don't you think we would have already done so?" Now it was Rose's voice.

_Rose is being sarcastic. She's okay,_ James decided. So there was Lily, Rose, and Scorpius. So that left . . . "Albus? Albus are you alright?"

"Y . . . yeah . . ." his brother's voice sounded weak and tired. "But I-I think I might've b-broken my ankle . . . "

This was not good. Scorpius, Albus, Rose, and Lily were stuck, and Albus may have even broken his ankle!

Although the situation was unavoidable, James couldn't help but feel that it was his fault.

"I'll go get help!" he called, "stay where you are!"

If only they had listened.

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><p>"I'm <em>cold<em>!" Lily whined in an artificially high-pitched voice in an attempt to sound even cuter than she normally did.

While the trick worked on most adults, Rose was immune to it. She answered Lily in a high-pitched voice, imitating her cousin, "too _bad_!"

"But I'm really, really cold!" she complained in her normal voice.

"Well, that's really, really too bad!"

Actually," Albus put in, "I'm cold, too."

"So am I," said Rose, "but that doesn't mean - -"

"There's an ice cave right over there," Scorpius pointed out.

"Well . . ." Rose hesitated, "James said to stay here . . ."

"Since when do you listen to the rules?" asked Albus.

"Point taken," Rose said, "but still . . ." she looked at them. _This isn't going to get me anywhere,_ she decided. "Fine," Rose sighed, as she reluctantly followed her friends into the cave, "but something tells me that I'm going to regret this."

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><p>Running up a mountain of snow is never an easy task, especially when you are carrying a pair of skis as you do so.<p>

While James was strong and fit, being a chaser of the Gryffindor quidditch team, he was still panting more than Padfoot after a bird chase by the time he reached the top of the mountain.

Ginny glanced up from the road map that she was reading. There were no appropriate fireplaces to flu home, and apperating was out of the question, so the Potter's and the Weasley's decided to simply drive.

"Hey, James," she said, "You're back soon. Where are the others?"

James's eyes stung. "Th-there was an avalanche. Nobody was seriously hurt, but - -" he turned, not daring to meet his mother's eyes, "they g-got trapped in this ditch-like thingy."

Ginny's eyes widened in horror. "Get your father."

"Also, Rose was with us, too."

"Then get your Aunt Hermione and Uncle Ron. Hurry!"

"I'm on it!"

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><p>"Lily, stop eating the snow!" Rose commanded.<p>

But I'm thirsty!" she whined, scooping up another handful.

Rose knocked it out of her hand. "Stop it!"

"Oh, so Albus an do it, but not me?"

"What?" Rose turned to look at Albus. Sure enough, he was gobbling snow faster than she would have thought to be humanly possible. "Albus, stop! You don't know where that snow has been. What if wild animals pooped and peed in it?"

At that lovely thought, Albus and Lily then proceeded to spit out the snow they were eating, and began clawing at their tongues.

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><p>"Where's Rose?" wondered Hermione. "I hope she didn't fall through the thin ice again."<p>

"I'm sure she's fine," Ron said, "besides, she wouldn't make that mistake twice."

"People fall onto ice."

"Yeah, but she was skating on the thin ice."

"That' not what she told me," Hermione aid, realizing what had happened. "Ooh, that girl is so grounded when she gets back!"

That would soon become the least of their problems.

"Aunt Hermione, Uncle Ron!" James Sirius Potter came running up to them. He looked pale and worried. "Rose is in trouble," he said.

"What? How?"

"There was an avalanche. She wasn't hurt or anything, but - -"

He had lost Hermione at 'avalanche'. "_What_?" she demanded. "We have to get down there _now_!"

"Why?"

Hermione paled. "Avalanches almost always come in groups!"

The others fell silent with a chilling realization.

Ron broke the silence after a full thirty seconds. "This is bad," he decided.

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><p>"Albus, my fingers really hurt," Lily complained.<p>

"Let me see," said her brother, taking off Lily's gloves. What he saw both terrified and fascinated him. Lily's fingers were white and waxy; the tips were beginning to turn a sickening shade of dark purple. Albus had a hunch, but didn't want to jump to conclusions. Rose, however, had no problem breaking the news to them.

Rose let out a small gasp. "Frostbite," she breathed in horror.

"W-what is it?" asked Scorpius, who had just woken up from a nap.

"It's nothing to worry about," she lied, "we just need to get her to a doctor as soon as possible."

Scorpius raised an eyebrow. "But we're trapped," he protested.

"So?" Rose demanded. "We'll climb our way out."

"But I can't walk," Albus said.

"You're right," Rose said thoughtfully. She hesitated for a long time. Finally, she sighed, seeing no way out of this. "Albus," she told him, "I think you'll have to stay here. We'll come back for you, I-I promise." Rose blinked the tears out of her eyes, "I'm really sorry," she whispered.

"It's fine," Albus said, although it clearly wasn't. She was abandoning him! He understood why, but that didn't mean he liked it. It wasn't fair. Albus turned away so that no one would see him cry.

Rose and Lily got up to go, Scorpius joined them, but turned around at last minute before exiting the cave. Malfoy couldn't help but feel a bit guilty. Albus was his best friend, and he was just leaving him with a broken ankle in an ice cave. Still, he wanted to get out of the cave as soon as possible. Was it so wrong to put his life before those of others? It was only natural to want to save his own butt. Besides, he needed to protect the girls. Scorpius laughed to himself. Protect the girls? Now he was just looking for excuses. Rose would sooner die in a fight than have help.

He cleared his throat, "Hey . . . um . . . so do you want me to stay, or . . . ?"

Albus could tell he didn't mean it. The question was almost rhetorical. Still, it was a kind gesture, and it must have been hard for him. He took a deep breath. "Go ahead," he said, "I'll be fine."

Scorpius shrugged and followed the girls.

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><p>Rose scowled as Scorpius approached her. "Took you long enough!" she huffed.<p>

"Sorry," he apologized, "I was just making sure Albus was alright."

Rose's expression softened a bit. "Yeah, well, we have to get up as soon as possible. As night approaches, the temperature continues to plummet and the risk of Hypothermia increases."

Lily and Scorpius both stared at her blankly, not having understood a word of what she just said.

Rose's eyes got bigger. "On second thought," she said, "get back to the cave right now!"

"Why?"

"But you just said - -"

"And now I changed my plan. Now, GO! MOVE IT!"

Scorpius and Lily were smart enough not to argue with an angry Rose Weasley. Besides, her gut feelings were almost always right. So they obeyed her and ran back to the ice cave. It was a good thing, too, because just then a huge pile of snow/ice slid down the mountain.

"We'll just stay here until the avalanche stops," Rose told them.

Albus looked up. "Hey, aren't you supposed to be - -"

"No time!" Rose said. "There's another avalanche, go as far back in the cave as you can."

"But what if the cave collapses?"

"You have a better idea?"

"No."

"They all closed their eyes, not daring to look. Rose was the first to open hers. She glanced at her friends. Fortunately, they were all unscathed. "You can open your eyes now," she told them.

They all did, glad that it was over.

"I should've known!" Rose groaned. "Of COURSE avalanches come in groups! They weaken the snow. I'm so STUPID!" she looked at Lily, who was shivering ferociously. "We need to get help n - - oh no." Rose froze as she stared at the ice cave entrance; it was completely blocked out.

Albus saw it, too. "It must have caved in!"

Lily started sobbing. "We're going to die!"

Scorpius shivered, "My father's going to kill me," he whispered.

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><p><strong>Please review!<strong>


	3. Chapter 3

**ChickWithThePurpleGuitar: Thank you.**

**At last, the long-awaited chapter for my (three) readers. Enjoy!**

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><p>"It's not so bad," said Albus, trying to reassure his companions. His attempts, however, were completely in vain. Still, he decided to try to be calm. Scorpius had never been on a skiing trip before - - for all he knew, this sort of thing happened all the time. And Lily was younger and got scared far too easily. He had to be brave for them. Albus could only hope that Rose would catch on.<p>

Once again, his hopes proved to be futile. Rose stood up. She looked so angry that Albus could have sworn that he saw smoke come out of her ears. "Not so bad?" she repeated incredulously. "Not so bad? Are you insane? We're trapped in an ice cave with no way out!"

Scorpius cringed as the severity of the situation struck him. He continued to shiver. Come to think of it, Malfoy could not remember ever being so cold in his life. What really frightened him, though, was not that he was shivering, but the fact that he couldn't seem to stop. Was this normal?

The others were also shivering, he noted, although nowhere near as vigorously as him.

Rose realized this, too. She turned to Malfoy. "Are you okay?" she asked.

Scorpius seethed. Was he okay? Was he OKAY? Of course he was not okay! He was trapped in a freakin' snow cave, for crying out loud! To think he had believed Albus when he told him that this muggle sport was perfectly safe. And to make matters even worse, he'd end up having to listen his father's I-told-you-so-lecture once he got back home. And she had the nerve to ask if he was _okay_? "No! No, I am not okay! How could you ask me such an idiotic question? I thought you Ravenclaws were supposed to be smart!"

Rose was shocked. She should have been angry, but instead she felt hurt. Of course, she couldn't let him know that, so instead she just rolled her eyes and said, "Okay, Mr. Sunshine."

Lily giggled.

Scorpius scowled, trying to come up with a witty retort,but he had nothing. So he just did his classic Malfoy sneer at her, trying to look as intimidating as possible.

Albus, sensing the tension, tried to calm them all down. "Hey, look," he said. "I know that we're all in a living hell, but - - "

"Mummy says you're not allowed to use that word!" shouted Lily, pointing an accusing finger at her older brother.

Al rolled his eyes, "Okay, fine. I know that we're all in an H-E-Double-Hockey-Sticks - -"

"What?" demanded Lily and Scorpius simultaneously, while at the same time Rose shouted, "Nobody says that anymore!"

"It's an expression for hell. Violet taught it to me," Albus explained. Ah, Violet. That was who they needed right now. Violet was a wheelchair-bound, Canadian exchange student. She had come to Hogwarts on a special program for wizard children with special needs. Violet was in Ravenclaw with Rose, and one of the few people who could match up to her intelligence. "She says it's a muggle game. It's very popular where she comes from."

"I remember," Rose said, "I just couldn't believe you would say that. No one has said that in, like, thirty years!"

"I remember, too," Scorpius added, "she explained the game to us." He shrugged. "It sounded pretty stupid to me. How about we say our own version of it? I like H-E-Double-Broomsticks!"

"No," said Rose immediately, "I mean, think about it. Hell is usually associated as being somewhere really hot, because it's believed to be in the center of the Earth - - which is physically impossible, I might add. Also, I am pretty sure the reason why they chose hockey sticks was because they look like capital Ls."

"So, fine. They'll be lower-cased then."

"But that's so stupid!" Rose cried, "it completely defeats the purpose!"

Malfoy shrugged. "So what?"

Ablus could see that Rose was about to lose her temper. Later, he would probably look back on this moment and laugh. They were fighting over something so incredibly idiotic that it was hilarious! But that was Rose, and Rose loved to argue. Albus seemed to remember a couple of years ago, Rose having actually having an argument with their Uncle George about whether they were having an argument or not! It was completely mental! Yet again, it was Uncle George. Their dad always said that George was like another kid altogether.

Lily glanced at her fingers. They had become slightly more purple and had begun to swell up a bit. She tried to put her mitten back on, when the ten-year-old came to a horrible discovery: he mitten wouldn't fit! She screamed.

"What is it?" asked Albus.

"My hand . . . I c-can't . . . feel it," Lily said, beginning to tear up. "Albus, I'm scared."

"Don't be," her brother said, "James will be back soon with help. Trust me, we'll be out within the hour."

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><p>"Are you <span>sure<span> this is where it happened?" Ron asked.

"Positive!" James sad, "they fell over this ledge and . . . wait, the ledge!" he ran over to the mini-cliff where he had last seen them. It was nowhere to be seen. "ALBUS?" he called, "LILY? ROSE?" now frantic, he searched the area again, as if expecting a cliff to come out of nowhere. James ran back to his parents, "They're gone!" he cried.

Everyone turned to Hermione. "What do you think?" asked Harry nervously.

Hermione took another look around the area. "Due to the lack of footprints or ski-lines, I'd say there was another avalanche a very short while ago, which would explain why the snow here is fresh." She shook her head a couple of times, willing herself not to cry. "It looks bad."

"We could try using a tracking charm," Harry suggested, "surely, if they're in this area, we'll be able to . . ."

"No," said Hermione, "it's not that simple. Unless they were wearing some sort of tracking device, there is no such spell." Hermione took a deep breath and tried to think straightly. "The best thing we can do as of now is dig while one of us calls a search party. Let's just pray that it's not too late."

Pretending not to hear the last part, Harry nodded. "Good idea, 'Mione. Ginny, you call the authorities, we'll conjure up some shovels and start digging. C'mon guys, we have no time to lose!" he looked down at the snow. "Don't worry, kids," he said, "we're coming for you."

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><p>Draco Malfoy was <span>not<span> a patient man. He glared at his pocket watch as if he wanted to pulverize it. Snapping it shut angrily, he cried, "That boy is nearly an hour late! Potter better have a good explanation for this!"

His wife, Astoria, rolled her eyes. "I'm sure it's nothing, dear," she said, "they probably just stopped for ice cream or something on the way."

Draco growled somewhat like a rabid dog. "Then they should have sent an owl This is **unacceptable**!" he pounded his fist on the table, knocking over an ink bottle, spilling the liquid all over their expensive carpet.

Astoria gave him a look, but said nothing. Draco had been particularly unpleasant lately - - even more so than usual. And Astoria knew why, though. Draco had never fully accepted his son's friendship with his former nemesis's children. He was worried that Scorpius might become one of them.

Astoria snapped her fingers, and their house elf, Foo-Foo appeared. She ordered the elf to clean up the mess, leaving her husband to mope.

Draco had been extremely reluctant to let his son go on this muggle trip. Skiing sounded rather dangerous. What kind of twisted person attached boards to their feet and slid down a mountain for fun? It was mad! And to think, some people actually did it for enjoyment. It seemed like just the stupid, risky pastime that the Potters would enjoy.

Mr. Malfoy looked over his shoulder. The door to the drawing room was slightly ajar. He knew that Calista was in there and did not want to disturb her. Slowly, Malfoy crept up to the door and peered through the crack. Sure enough, Calista was in there. The little ten-year-old sat with her feet up on the coffee table and a book of pureblood genealogy (a gift from Grandfather) in her lap. Her long, platinum-blond hair was pulled back in a large, satin ribbon. Her sea green eyes, which were inherited from her mother, sparkled with glee and anticipation as she read the page on the Malfoys.

Calista reminded Draco slightly of himself when he was in his youth. Lucius always told him that he should be proud to be the father of such a fine young lady, but Draco wasn't so sure. Did he really want his kid to go through the same childhood experience that he had been forced to endure? Their beliefs were not exactly encouraged these days, and Draco knew that Calista would get into some serious trouble if she opened up her mouth to the wrong person.

Draco would never actually admit it, but although he often pretended otherwise, he was, in a way, proud that Scorpius turned out the way he did. His friendship with the Potters had bolstered their family's reputation more than ever.

And it wasn't just the Potters. Scorpius seemed to make friends wherever he went. The boy had a certain charm to him. I don't know why I'm surprised, Draco thought, with a slight smirk forming on his lips, _he is my son after all. _Calista, on the other hand, was far more like the stereotypical Slytherin: cold, collected, cunning, clever - - was it just him, or did all of Slytherin's adjectives start with the letter C?

Suddenly, without any warning, there was a shriek from upstairs. "Draco, Calista," came Astoria's hoarse voice, "come up here right now."

Calista exited the Drawing Room and exchanged glances with her father. They were both thinking the same thing: this could not possibly mean anything good.

Astoria was normally a fairly calm person. She did not worry over just any little thing. Often pushed away problems with a sarcastic remark, or a roll of her eyes. It was her sardonic sense of humor that made Draco first fall for her. Looking back he knew he had made the right choice.

Running up the stairs, four at a time, with Calista trailing behind taking two steps at a time, they reached the master bedroom. Astoria's eyes were red and puffy, no doubt from crying. Astoria crying was a rare sight.

Calista immediately ran to her mother's side, abandoning her normally contemptuous (another C word) outer shell. "Mummy, what's wrong?" she whispered.

Astoria looked straight into Malfoy's eyes, and held up a letter in her hand. At once, Malfoy knew. She did not even need to say the words. "I just got an owl from the Potters," she croaked, her eyes filling up tears once more, "Scorpius is gone."

* * *

><p><strong>It took a really long time, I am aware of the fact. I really hope you liked it. <strong>

**Please review and tell me what you think. Any suggestions would be great!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Master_of_bugs123: Thanks, I'm so glad that you like it.**

**Chick_With_The_Purple_Guitar: I actually am working on one. It takes place a couple of months after Deathly Hallows and will be called Slytherin Story. I have not posted it yet, but keep your eyes open.**

**JessiS: Thank you!**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 4:<strong>

**Day 1**

**22:43**

"G-gone?" Calista repeated, "as in, dead?"

"No, Dear," said Astoria, wiping a tear from her eye with a fancy lace handkerchief, "gone as in missing. We don't know where he is."

There was a long pause. The only sound that could be heard was a lone dog howling in the distance. The eerie tone filled the room with an ominous chill, as the Malfoy let the dreaded news sink in.

Draco couldn't remember ever feeling so devastated in his life. Not when he almost killed Dumbledore, not when his father was arrested, not even the death of Crabbe could compare to the feeling of anguish and utter despair that he felt at that very moment. It was as if he was in Azkaban all over again, with dementors sucking the very life out of him.

It was Calista who broke the silence first. Carefully, as not to upset her parents any more than they already were (if that was even possible), quietly said, "They will find him, won't they, Mummy?"

Astoria paused briefly before whispering, "I hope so, Honey."

It was impossible. Scorpius Hyperion Greengrass Malfoy, the whom he had raised and cared for for twelve years, the kid that could name every major league quidditch team, the child whom had always aimed high and reached his goals, the one whom he loved so much and held so dear, was gone. The thought itself seemed unfathomable, but Draco knew in his heart that it was all too true.

_Potter will pay for this,_ he thought furiously,_ he would make sure that the Gryffindor regretted the day he was ever born!_

* * *

><p>"Knock. Knock," Lily said.<p>

Nobody answered for a full thirty seconds. Finally, sighing dramatically, Albus mumbled, "Who's there?"

"I. Wanda."

"I Wanda who?"

"I Wanda GET OUT OF HERE! You lied, Al! You said we'd be our in an hour, tops! I'm tired and hungry and I can't feel my fingers! When is James coming?"

"Albus," Scorpius whispered so that only his friend could hear. His voice sounded slightly sheepish. "I, um, have to use the facilities."

Albus paused, trying to stifle his laughter. "Er . . . well, if you really have to go, do it on the other side, as far away from us as possible."

Malfoy was incredulous. "Here? Now? Are you mad?" he cried indignantly. "I can't do it here - - not . . . not with all there . . . these _girls._"

Rose, who had been listening to their entire conversation, rolled her eyes. "Oh honestly, Malfoy, none of us want to see any more of you than absolutely necessary. I have a hard enough time looking at you right now."

"Because I'm so good looking?" he joked.

"Yeah, you wish. Now do what you need to do and do it fast. We won't look, I promise."

Scorpius hesitated, but he really did have to go. "Make sure they stick to their word," he ordered Albus.

* * *

><p>"Anything?" Harry asked.<p>

Ginny shook her head. "Not a trace. We've searched everywhere. What about you?"

"The search party can't come until tomorrow morning. I guess we're just going to have to wait until then. The hotel is letting us stay free of charge under the circumstances."

Ginny rolled her eyes, "Oh, how _generous_ of them. And you're sure there's no tracking charm?"

"Positive."

Ginny kicked the dresser in frustration. "I'm a terrible mother!" she cried in anguish. Then Ginny began to sob, a truly rare sight.

Harry was not used to such scenarios. Normally it was Ginny comforting him, not the other way around. Still, he couldn't bare to see his wife like this. Harry attempted to comfort her in a gentle, albeit somewhat awkward hug. She shrugged it off. "Look Gin - - no really, look at me. I say this with a full heart that you are the best mother I know. But even you couldn't prevent the unpreventable."

Ginny sniffed. "But it's my fault," she protested, "if I hadn't let them go off by themselves - -"

"Ginny, don't you dare say that. It's just as much my fault as it is yours. Besides, I wouldn't count them out if I were you. When I was in muggle primary school, we saw a video on people who do search and rescue. You haven't seen these muggles. They have electric blankets and food and medicine. They also have these big tracking dogs like can smell people over three meters under snow. They'll be just fine."

"Yeah," Ginny agreed, "if they survive the night," she added darkly.

* * *

><p>"I really hope this place isn't airtight."<p>

"What's 'airtight'?" Scorpius wondered.

Albus winced. Had he just said that out loud? _Oh, god. Please don't tell him what it is, Rose. He's scared enough already._ _Please, please_ _I beg of you._

Unfortunately, Rose did not receive Albus's imaginary telepathic message. Besides, it was no use anyway. Rose, being herself, would never pass up on the opportunity to show off her knowledge. "Airtight means that oxygen can't escape or enter a place. If this cave were airtight, which I highly doubt," she glared at her cousin, "then we would all suffocate and die before we died of hypothermia or starvation. But, like I said, I highly doubt it."

"How can you be so sure?"

Rose pointed up. "We're close to the surface. I know because I saw light earlier. Plus, there's a small hole right up there- - no, don't bother, Lily, you can't even get your fist through that thing, let alone climb out." She paused, then added, "Duh."

"Maybe we could make a sign and stick it through the hole," Albus suggested, "then they'd be able to find us more easily."

Rose looked at her cousin incredulously. "I can't believe I didn't think of that!"

"There's just one tiny problem," said Lily, "we have nothing to make a sign out of."

"Not true," Al pointed out, "we just have to be creative, that's what Dad and Mum always say. For instance, we can use . . . the ski pole as a stick," he grabbed his pole, "and we need some paper - - or something paper-like to write on. Like, um . . ." Albus thought hard, trying to come up with an example. Surely therehad to be _something_.

"I still have the receipt from my coat," Rose announced, "we can write on the back of it."

Albus nodded, feeling like an idiot for not that himself. Of course, it was so bloody _obvious_!

Al smirked at his cousin. "Good work, Rosie," said, knowing it would make her upset. It was well-know that Rose hated her nickname. The petname had originally been thought up by Ron. It was cute when she was six and all of her older cousins called her "Rosie Posy", after Victoire had called her by it in the corridor during her first term, everyone taunted her about it for months. Rose had then announced that she never wanted to be called Rosie again. Normally family member respected this, but on occasion the rule was still broken to annoy her.

Albus's plan work. Rose's cheeks turned bright red, and Albus realized at once that he had made a horrible mistake. Normally, after teasing Rose an adult would stop her from hurting anybody, but there were no adults in the cave. That meant that no one could stop her from physically abusing her cousin in a place where nobody could hear his screams (well, except Scorpius and Lily- - but that's besides the point!)

That was another problem with Rose; many people underestimated her because she was a girl. But make no mistake, if she wanted to, Rose could pack a punch. Albus remembered her once breaking a kid's nose after he made fun of her weight. She probably would have broken more if she had the chance. (Yet again, this made her a useful ally to have, for she was also extremely protective.)

"Wait, stop it! I'm sorry Rose. Please stop it!"

Rose swung her fist and stopped just before it hit her cousin. Then, she began laughing hysterically. "Merlin, you should have seen your face!"

Albus fumed. "Bloody hell, Rose. Why did you do that?" He turned. Scorpius and Lily were laughing, too. "Stop it! Gerroff! It's not funny!"

"No, it's pretty funny."

Without thinking, Albus lunged at Rose with all of his might.

"What is wrong with you? Can't you take a joke?" She cried.

Albus was breathing hard. He had just pinned his cousin. He never did anything like that. What was wrong with him?

"You just hit a girl!" Scorpius cried.

"Ooh!" Lily added for dramatic effect.

"Shut up!" he shouted. "Rose, I-I'm sorry. . . _again_."

Rose smiled sweetly and took her cousin's hand- - and then flipped him herself.

Albus moaned in pain. "Okay, we're even."

"Nope," she smacked him in the face, "_now_ we're even!"

* * *

><p>James (understandably) could not sleep that night. The traumatized teenager lay in bed, eyes wide open, staring at the ceiling. What had happened in the avalanche had been his fault. He was probably the worst older brother in the entire world.<p>

Professor Trelawney had made a prediction last term that he would lose someone he loved. James had dismissed the prophecy as hogwash, not taking it all seriously. Yet again, James rarely took _anything_ seriously. Except for now, that is. Maybe if he had been more careful, . . .then maybe, _maybe_ he could have saved them. If he had just acted a little more quickly . . .

"James? James, are you still awake?"

James knew that he wasn't supposed to be up at this hour, and that if his mum caught him, he'd be in big trouble- -or worse, she might try to comfort him about the situation! James did not respond, instead he pulled the covers over his head and pretended to be sleeping.

_I don't know why I'm so worried. They'll probably find them tomorrow,_ James reasoned.

Now satisfied with his logic, James rolled over and slept the night away.

Little did he know, things were about to get far worse, before they would get better.

* * *

><p>Albus said, "Hey, Lily. I need your hat."<p>

"What? No, you have your own!"

"I can't use mine, it won't do the job. Yours has finer threads."

Rose's eyes widened as she realized what her cousin panned to do. "Give it to him, Lily," she ordered.

Lily hesitated. "What are you planning to do?"

"Um. . . it's a surprise. Trust me, Lil'."

The younger girl sighed and handed it to her brother reluctantly. "Just be careful with it."

Al nodded and began to put a loose string in the hat, slowly unraveling it until there was a large gaping hole.

Lily screamed. "Hey! Grandmother made me that!"

Scorpius shrugged. He didn't see what the big deal was, it was just a stupid hat. So why did Lily look like she was going to cry? "Just buy a new one," he suggested.

Lily's lower lip quivered. "No! This one had shentimentil value!" she cried, repeated the word she had often heard grown-ups use.

Rose laughed. "That's _sentimental_ value." Still, Scorpius's insensitivity to her cousin was understandable. She and Albus had visited the Malfoys before, and they never struck Rose as the kind of family that would knit each other hats. Changing the subject, she cleared her throat. "Anyway, Al? How's the sign coming along?"

Albus shook his head. "I'm such an idiot! I forgot the most important part! We need something to write with and I don't even have a pen."

"We could always use blood," Scorpius pointed out. His friends looked at him in disgust.

"Blood?"

Scorpius blushed, looking somewhat sheepish. "You know, like in stories where two people need to sign a contract and they write their names in blood to make it official. Mum always read them to me and Calista."

"Wow," said Albus, "no offense, but those are some pretty morbid bedtime stories."

Rose rolled her eyes. "Don't mind him, he's a wimp. He won't even let him mum read _Babity Rabbity_ to him!"

Albus frowned, "I don't like stories where doggies die!"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: _Babbity Rabbity and her Cackling Stump_ is a short story in the Tales of Beadle the Bard. I myself do not read things where dogs are killed.**

**Please review!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Finally, an update! I hope that people are still reading this.**

** Masterofbugs123: Thank you for reviewing!**

**WARNING: One of the scenes in this chapter involves inappropriate alcohol consumption. Since this is a T-rated fic, I wasn't sure if the warning a necessary, but chose to add it just in case.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 5:<strong>

**Day 1**

**23:06**

"So . . . who's blood should we use?" Rose asked casually, as if discussing the weather.

"Not mine!" shouted Lily indignantly.

"I'm good," said Albus.

"Ditto," she confirmed. They all looked at Scorpius. "It WAS your idea, after all. It's only fair," Rose reasoned.

Scorpius, much to their surprise, did not put up to much of a fight on the matter. "Okay, fine," he agreed, "But I'm doing it myself." Scorpius yanked off his glove, glancing at his hand in horror. "I don't think it's supposed to be that colour," he muttered quietly.

Only Rose heard him. The redhead glanced at her friend's hand in concern. "Ouch," she said. Malfoy's forefinger and thumb were a sickly shade of dark purple that made Lily's hand look normal by comparison. "Has it been hurting?" Rose asked.

Scorpius shrugged. "A little," he admitted, "now it's mostly numb- -but don't worry. I'm fine, honest." Despite his friend's protest, he then proceeded to nibble at one of his (non-frostbitten) fingers, until a small amount of blood poured out. He grabbed the receipt from Albus. "What should I write?" he asked.

"You know what? I-I changed my mind," said Rose suddenly, "I want to do it."

"It's fine, really. Al? Are you listening?"

Albus was huddled up at the edge of the cave, shivering vigorously. For a long while, he said nothing, before responding, "Make it a short one. Write 'help' or something," he answered eventually. Albus's voice sounded weary, like that of an old man.

Scorpius nodded. "Okay." And he began to write out the gruesome message. Writing in blood was a much more difficult task then it was made out to be. Scorpius had to make the cut in his finger bigger multiple times just to get the blood to flow. At least the pain wasn't too bad, considering he had lost most of the feeling in his fingers.

"Finished," he announced. Looking back at his work, Scorpius realized that it really wasn't that impressive. The writing was slanted, smudged, and barely readable. Still, it was going to have to do.

Later, the terrified children huddled together at night for warmth, with an exception of Scorpius who, according to Rose, had a phobia of hugging. Needless to say, none of them got much sleep that night.

* * *

><p><strong>Day 2:<strong>

**6:09**

By morning, whatever was left of the group's optimism had all but vanished. Scorpius was particularly distraught.

"I can't believe this! We've been in here for nearly a day and nobody has come for us."

"They'll probably come soon," Al mumbled.

"How soon?" the blond demanded. He stood up, careful not to bang his head as he did so. "I'm tired, I'm cold, I'm hungry, thirsty, and my hand is turning purple! I mean, look at this," he pulled off his glove, "is this a color that occurs naturally on the human body? That's what I thought. This is madness, Al. Complete and utter madness." He sat back down with his arms folded, having made his point quite clear.

"Nope," Rose said, "it will be complete and utter madness when we've been here three days, are starving and forced to resort to cannibalism in order to survive," she grinned, "now **that** would be madness." Albus wondered if his cousin was beginning to lose it. Yet again, she never really had 'it' to begin with.

Lily's eyes widened in horror. "That . . . that won't really happen. Will it, Albus?"

"Of course not," he glared at his cousin. "_Right_, Rose?"

Rose shrugged. "I dunno, I just remember it was on some show that I saw on Animal Planet. There was a special on survival tips- -"

Scorpius gave her an incredulous look. "Do your parents know you watch that?"

"Dad? Yes and he doesn't really care. Mum? Well . . . what she doesn't know won't hurt her."

Despite being raised in wizard home, the Weasley and Potter kids were frequent television watchers thanks to an invention their grandfather created called the Muggle Room. The Muggle Room was basically a separate room in a wizard home separated by a thick wall of steel or concrete in order to ensure that magic would not interfere with the technology. The room was normally equipped with an electricity generator, a television, often a computer, and occasionally other screened devices that most purebloods would not get the chance to see in everyday life.

Arthur Weasley had originally created the room for research purposes only, but some wealthy magic families decided that they wanted to get a taste of Muggle life and had it installed. Needless to say, the Malfoys did not have one. Still, whenever he was at the Potters, Scorpius enjoyed spending time there, something that annoyed his family to no end.

Rose loved watching educational programs on the telly (she _was_ a Ravenclaw, after all.) "Anyway, I don't think that will happen. We'd all be dead long before- -"

"Rose!" Albus bellowed. "Do you really have to traumatize your little cousin _now_?"

Rose smirked. "Hey," she said brightly, "everybody needs a hobby!"

* * *

><p><strong>Day 2:<strong>

**13:49**

Astoria Caroline Greengrass Malfoy the Third was having a horrible day. Work had been miserable - - the nerve of them, making her attend after what had happened to her son. Still, she knew that skipping work was not an option; getting the job had been hard enough and she couldn't risk losing it. Few people were willing to hire a Malfoy these days.

Upon returning home, Astoria noticed an odd odor coming from the third floor. The smell was something that she had come quite accustomed to from her father's get togethers back when she was growing up in Greengrass estate. She had rarely experienced it in Malfoy Manor - - and never on such a high level.

Running up the stars into the master bedroom she realized that it was just as she had feared: her husband, Draco Malfoy, was lying unconscious on the bed with at least a dozen bottles of firewhiskey dispersed all over the room.

The last time she remembered Draco consuming alcohol was in the summer of 1998, shortly after the Second Wizard War when he had been going through severe depression. The unhealthy addiction had been nearly impossible to stop - - Astoria did **not** want to go down THAT road again. Besides, they already had enough to fear in the public eye without drinking problems. What kind of example was he setting for Calista?

"Get up, you bastard!" she cried, kicking her husband.

Mr. Malfoy stirred and opened a bloodshot eye. He groggily sat up and glanced around the room. His eyes widened when he realized what he had just done.

Astoria was not about to show him any mercy. "Care to explain yourself?"

"I . . . uh . . . well, ya see . . . I kinda. . ." as he spoke, Astoria noted that his speech seemed slurred, not unlike her father commonly behaved after returning from a big party.

"What kind of an example are you setting for Calista? You good-for-nothing . . ." Astoria stopped, looking at her husband's forlorn expression. It was extremely pathetic. Draco never was never very emotional, as most Slytherin boys (and boys in general) were, but on the rare occasion that he did show emotion, it was taken to the extreme, making up for all of the times that he didn't. Astoria sighed and sat down on the bed with him. "Look, I understand it's hard for you. It's hard for all of us. But you need to put yourself together. This is no way for a self-respecting pureblood should behave!"

"But, Scorpius- - he's . . . he's . . ." Malfoy couldn't even bring himself to finish that sentence.

"Scorpius is probably just fine. And if worst comes to worst, Calista will need you more than ever, so this is no time to fall apart." Her husband didn't answer. "Draco? Come on, Draco, that's no way to behave."

"It's my fault," he whispered, " I should have never let him go on that stupid, Muggle trip!"

Astoria stood up. "Okay, now you're just being ridiculous! What a stupid thing to say! Honestly! I mean, _I_ was the one that talked you into letting him go." This was about as close to an apology that Astoria could manage. Uncomfortable with the blame being even **that** close to her, she added. "But if it's anyone's fault, it's Potter's. The very _nerve_ of him - - letting our son go off by himself with those children. When I agreed to this I thought he would be under adult supervision at all times." She suddenly stopped rambling. Unable to hold it in any longer, Astoria buried her face in her hands. After several moments of silence, she whispered, "I just can't believe that's he's really gone."

Now it was Draco's turn to be comforting. Astoria was right, he couldn't go on like this. "You're right, it **is** Potter's fault. And I'm going to make sure something is done about it."

* * *

><p>Tracey Davis sat at her desk. The former half-blood Slytherin examined her client's files. "Are you quite sure about this, Mr. Malfoy?" she asked hesitantly, as if afraid of the answer he would give.<p>

He nodded. "Definitely. My boy is gone, and I think that something ought to be done about it."

"Yes, but, sue Harry Potter . . . ! That's a bit. . . _drastic_, don't you think?" _And you're not even sure that he's really dead,_ she added to herself.

"Come on, Trace, I know it seems like a long shot, but you're the best lawyer in the wizarding world!" Malfoy's eyes were large, like a puppy begging for food at the dinner table. He was almost pleading with her. "If I even have a chance, I'm going to need you."

Tracey looked away, trying to hide the fact that she was blushing, Malfoy always was a master in the art of flattering women. It was true, of course, what he had said. She hadn't lost a single case in the twelve years she had had the job. Arguing was something that just came naturally to her, as it did with most Slytherins. But she had never encountered a case like this. Sure, she felt bad for him, he had just lost his son after all, but his plan was not practical. Plus, there was no way the court would believe that the savior of the wizarding world had anything to do with a young boy's death.

Draco watched her carefully, he was shaking from head to toe in anticipation. He didn't know what he would do if she refused this case.

"Sue Harry Potter," she repeated, as if testing the words out on her tongue. Tracey paused, once again considering the position. True, it was a complete waste of time, but why should she care? She got paid whether she won the case or not. Plus, she always liked a good challenge. Might as well give it a try. "I'll do it."

* * *

><p><strong>Note: The idea of the Muggle Room is not unique to this fanfic. I also used it in Expect the Unexpected, a Harry Potter crossover. I will also probably use it in other next generation fics. <strong>

**Anyway, I apologize for the length. I intended for this to be longer. **

**Anyway, I hope you guys liked it. Please review and tell me what you think. If you have any ideas, comments, praise, or constructive criticism for me, feel free to comment.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's note: This chapter is dedicated to my good friend, and fellow fanfiction writer, Tzitzi in honor of her birthday *Crowd applauds*.  
><strong>

**Also, a big thank you to Hedgi, Master_of_bugs_123, and Meagan Snow for reviewing. You guys are awesome!**

* * *

><p><strong>Day 2:<strong>

**15:37**

THUMP. THUMP. THUMP.

Albus banged his ski pole against the roof of the cave, hoping to make a hole. Lily was bawling, and Rose was trying to explain to Scorpius the concept of infinity.

"It's quite simple, really," Rose insisted.

"It's not possible!" Malfoy declared stubbornly. "Numbers can't go on forever. Everything comes to a stop eventually."

"Not everything. Most things, yes, but not everything has to. That's the amazing thing about numbers - - hey, are you even listening? Look, Scorpius, look. Here, so let's say I draw a circle. Where does it begin and when does it end?"

"That's easy," he replied. "Wherever my quill starts."

"No, that's not what I mean."

You just can't admit that you're wrong."

"Can not!"

"Can too!"

"Can not!"

"Can too!"

"Can not!"

"SHUT UP!" Al suddenly shouted. "Be quiet, all of you. We need to come up with a plan to get ourselves out of here. None of us have eaten in over twenty-four hours and we won't be able to make it much longer like this. Brainstorm, people!"

"What's the use? We're all going to die in here!"

The older boy reached out his hand, and slapped his sister across the face, leaving behind a red mark. "LIAR! We will make it out, but not if you keep talking like that! We can't afford to think so negatively, unless you want us all to die! Is that what you want? Is that what you want, Lily? Do you want to kill us all with your whining?"

Lily's eyes were as wide as saucers. Her brother had never struck her before. "N-no," she said meekly.

"I thought so. Now make yourself useful and help me dent the roof. And you two," he said, referring to Scorpius and Rose, "the same goes for you!"

Scorpius straightened with indignity. Even at times such as this, if not more so, his Malfoy heritage stood out. He was not going to be ordered around by anyone. He was also not one to abandon his sardonic sense of humor. "Snap out of it, mate! This is the second girl you've hit so far!"

His attempts to joke at the situation, however, backfired. Albus narrowed his eyes at the blond boy, and clenched his hands into fists. "Oh, I'm sorry, Scorpius. Would you prefer that I smack you instead?"

"Actually, I wouldn't," he said, smirking. Malfoy was playing a dangerous game. He knew it, too. Albus had already proved unstable when angry, and provoking him was likely to make it worse. Still, maybe he could - -

Black spots danced before Malfoy's eyes as he staggered to keep his balance. The next thing Scorpius knew, he was lying on the ground, being shaken awake by Al and Rose. Albus looked considerably calmer.

"Wha-what happened?"

"Dehydration," Rose explained, refusing to meet Scorpius's eyes. "Dizzy spells and fainting are common side effects. Here, have some water," she pulled out a purple canteen.

"This is yours," he said, confused, pushing the container away.

"It is? Wow, you're brilliant! Look, Al, Scorpius knows this is my canteen? How could he possibly tell. I mean, other than the purple colour. Or the fact that it says 'Rose' on the side. Honestly, who would've thought- -"

"If I agree to drink it, will you shut up?"

Rose laughed. "He's being sarcastic. That means he's okay."

* * *

><p><strong>Day 2:<strong>

**18:49**

"I'm still not sure about this," Astoria said.

"Oh, come on, Love. What's there not to be sure about?"

The former Slytherin crossed her arms and glared at her husband. "We're suing Harry Potter! What do you mean 'what's not to be sure about'? The whole idea is stupid!"

"Stupid?" Draco frowned. "Well, we can't back out now, can we? I already scheduled an appointment."

Astoria groaned. "Well, why do I have to come? I don't want to leave Calista, especially at a . . . a time like now. She needs someone to be there for her."

"Trust me, one person will not have nearly as much of an effect in court. Plus, they would never listen to a single word I said, if I came alone. Besides, who could say no to a face like yours?" Astoria scowled, so he dropped the subject and continued. "Why are you worried about Calista? She's at your sister's house. Everything's going to be fine my dear. We'll sue Potter for all he's worth!"

"But it's not Potter I want," she said quietly, looking down at the ground. "It's Scorpius."

* * *

><p>Calista Malfoy was always particular about her friends. The few that she had all fell into a very narrow category. They needed to be purebloods, for a start. All-Slytherin families were best, although the occasional Ravenclaw was tolerated. They needed to be rich - - Malfoys never associated with bottom-feeders. But that was not all. To be a wealthy, pureblood, Slytherin wasn't enough. He or she needed to <em>behave<em> like a proper pureblood as well. And, family or not, Arissa did not fit the bill.

Arissa Nott was Calista Malfoy's first cousin. She was the daughter of Theodore Nott and Daphne Greengrass, her mother's sister. She, like Calista, was ten-years-old. But their similarities ended there. The was small and weakly-built, with stringy brown hair, and large inquisitive eyes. She was pale, too. Almost as pale as Calista herself, even though she technically did not have any Malfoy blood.

Despite her well-bred heritage, Arissa Nott might as well have been a mudblood. All one had to do was take one look at girl. She often wore pants. Yes, _pants_! What kind of self-respecting pureblood young lady would wear trousers? But it was not Arissa's dress style that was the most repulsive thing about her. Not by far.

Arissa liked to practice taxidermy.

* * *

><p><strong>Day 2:<strong>

**21:06**

Albus Potter woke up to the sound of laughter. That couldn't be right, could it?

Al rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and attempted to sit up. He was momentarily confused when all he saw was white. It took him a couple of seconds to remember where he was. Soon his bewilderment turned to panic. How long had he been asleep? Why were they still in the ice cave? Surely **someone** would've found them by now.

The laughter came once again, only adding to the discombobulation going through his mind. Al turned around, overexerting the pressure he was putting on his bad foot. Albus howled in pain, and the laughter increased as he faced the source of the terrible sound.

It was Rose.

Rose was sitting cross-legged, staring straight ahead. Her eyes were unfocused with a hint of insanity in them, and she was grinning broadly. Every few seconds she burst in a frenzy of hysterical laughter.

_What the . . .?_

Albus watched his psychotic cousin for nearly two minutes, before finally building up the courage to ask her what she found so funny.

Rose smiled. "I'm placing bets on who will die first. I'm thinking Lily, but the blond kid's not doing too well either," she gestured towards Scorpius, who appeared to be half-asleep in the corner of the cave. Lily was not fairing much better. The young girl was hugging her knees to her chest, and rocking back and fourth, silently crying as tears froze onto her face. Her eyes were glazed over and staring straight ahead.

"You like animals, don't you, Al?" Rose said. Her tone sounded a little more even than before, but the look of insanity in her eyes never faltered.

". . . Yes," he said hesitantly.

"You know how it is in the wild, then. It's kill or be killed. That's what they say, isn't it?" she giggled manically.

Albus began to scoot slightly away from her. He did not like where this was going. "We're not animals, Rose," he whispered.

"No?" she shot him a glare. "But aren't you the one who always says that animals and people aren't so different? That dogs and cats have the same right to live as human beings? You said that, didn't you? Don't try to deny it!"

Albus whimpered pathetically like a cornered puppy.

"It's the strong that survive. That's the way nature works. We haven't eaten anything in two days, and those two inches away from death. Just how hungry are you, Al? I, for one, would do anything for some food." She leaned forward into her cousin's face. The look of madness in her eyes was as prominent as ever._ "Anything._" She added for emphasis. Rose paused, and then giggled.

Albus began to slowly scoot away from her. He grabbed a ski pole, and held it up like a weapon. She wasn't **really** suggesting what he thought she was . . . was she? _She's mental!_ he thought. _Absolutely mental!_ "Get away from me," Albus said quietly. His hands began to tremble, nearly causing him to drop the pole in his hand.

But Rose did not listen. She inched closer and closer, as her poor cousin trembled in trepidation. "I'm not gonna hurt you," she said. Albus wasn't so sure.

Lily looked up. "What are you doing, Rose?"

The other girl whipped her head around, sending her two plaits flying. Her gaze rested on Lily and she smiled with the same insanity as before.

Albus began to panic._ She wouldn't **really** hurt Lily, would she?_ At this point he wasn't sure **what** to believe, but he was positive that Rose was not all there.

It was then Albus noticed Scorpius. He was sitting cross-legged, staring straight ahead. That was not what bothered him, it was something else:

Scorpius had stopped shivering.

* * *

><p>There was never a time that Calista could think of where she would actually <strong>want<strong> to see Arissa, but the idea of seeing her cousin now was more repulsive than ever. Scorpius was gone, after all. Her big brother.

The relationship between Calista and Scorpius had been a rocky one. In many ways the two were polar opposites. Scorpius was friendly and sociable. Calista was reclusive and distant. Her brother was a people-pleaser, while she was more of a loner. Scorpius was playful and child-like, despite the fact that he was the older sibling. His sister, on the other hand, was always serious and dignified. One would not be able to guess they were related at all, much less **siblings**, if it wasn't for their classic Malfoy traits.

And yet . . . there were things Calista rather admired about him. Scorpius could charm his way into just about anything. He was clever and cunning (the boy was a Slytherin, after all.) And just overall charismatic. Although she would never dare say it to his face, she secretly envied the popularity he had among his peers.

As she thought this over, Calstia did not notice her cousin coming up to her, and jumped when Arissa announced that she got a new cat.

"A live one?" asked Calista hopefully.

"No, silly! I think it was the Carrows'."

_Was?_ Calista gulped.

* * *

><p><strong>Reviews make me happy. *Hint hint*<strong>


	7. Chapter 7

**Sorry for the super long wait. This chapter is a rather long one, and very exciting if I do say so myself. I know that doesn't make up for me keeping you guys hanging, but . . . **

**Hedgi: Thanks, I'm glad you like the story. I won't spoil the ending, but I do plan to make it satisfying enough.**

**Lia: Haha, yep!**

**Master_of_bugs_123: Thank you so much!**

**Idizzle_22: Thanks!**

* * *

><p>Day 2:<p>

21: 07

"Get away from them!" Albus cried, pushing his cousin away and rushing towards his friend, or rushing as much as he could on his bad ankle. He shook him. "Scorpius? Scorpius! Are you alright, mate!"

Malfoy blinked and Albus sighed in relief.

"How are you feeling, buddy?"

" . . . F-Father?" he whispered.

Rose laughed. "Look at that, he's already delusional! Yep, it won't be long now."

"Shut up!" he hissed. "Scorpius Malfoy, can you hear me?"

The boy responded in a once that sounded tired and somewhat hoarse. Still, he babbled on, having an imaginary conversation, even pausing for several seconds for a response. "Calista, what are you still doing up? I don't care about the genealogy book. Yes, I've seen the page. Tell Foo-Foo to wash the dishes and then go to bed. I mean it, it's late. Otherwise I'm telling Mum and Dad that you're still awake. What am I doing up? I don't need to explain my life to you. I'm still awake because I'm older than you. Wait a few years and you can stay up late, too. I don't give a rat's arse how unfair it is. The world is not fair, Calista, get used to it!"

Albus was close to tears at this point. "Lily?" he whispered, turning to make her that her sister was okay.

"What's going on?" the little girl whimpered. "What's wrong with Rose? A-And Scorpius."

Albus did not bother trying to be brave. "I don't know," he said honestly.

"Albus, I'm scared," Lily whispered.

The older boy hugged her close to his chest. "Me too, Lily. Me too."

"Home?" Rose giggled as if she had just heard the funniest joke in the world. "Yeah, that's likely. Do you really think that we're going home at this point? Exactly how stupid are you? We're never leaving this place! Never!"

The cave echoed with Rose's manic laughter. Lily began to cry, and her brother soon joined her.

* * *

><p>Day 3:<p>

13: 42

"Why do they keep staring at us?" Draco demanded. "Go on, woman, don't you have things to do?" he shouted at some poor muggle woman who had given him an odd look. It didn't matter where Malfoy went, muggle or wizard, people would always stare at him as walked by.

"Maybe because your dressed like someone from the Renaissance," Astoria muttered. "I told you not to bring the cloak!"

"Do you want me to go to the Ministry of Magic in rags? Then they'll never take me seriously."

"I can't take you seriously when you kick little girls in the street!"

"She was laughing at me!" Malfoy pouted slightly and continued walking. "Look, there's the entrance. Come on." The two entered the phone booth, pressing 62442 (which, ironically, would spell "magic" on a phone.)

"You know," said Astoria conversationally. "Emma Dobbs thinks that people should replace the entrance to the Ministry because it will start to look suspicious, seeing as nobody in the muggle world uses pay phones anymore." It seemed as if the only way to keep her from grieving was by distracting herself with pointless chitchatter. On a normal day, Malfoy would have probably humored his wife. But that day he was just as, if not more stressed out than she was.

When they entered the Ministry, they were greeted by a woman sitting at a desk. (Using the term "greeted" rather lightly.) She was about twenty-five to thirty-five years old, although it was rather difficult to tell her exact age with her blocked by a large copy of _Witches Weekly_. She sat with her feet up and seemed to take no notice to the Malfoy's entrance.

Astoria scowled at the woman's unprofessional manner. If she had done that during work hours they would have sacked her in seconds! Still, trying her best to be polite, the former Greengrass coughed to get the woman's attention.

There was still no response, so her husband took it up a notch. "Excuse me," he said quietly, using every last bit of his willpower not to shout at the woman.

When they continued to be ignored, Astoria, at the edge of her patience, shouted rather rudely, "Hey, lady! We're talking to you!"

This time she looked up. "That was uncalled for," she mumbled, still not putting down the magazine. "So . . . what do you want?"

"We're meeting Miss Tracey Davis. You know, tall, blond, slightly murderous look in her eyes?" Astoria was only half-joking.

"No . . . I can't say I'm familiar with her. Perhaps you are at the wrong place . . . ?"

"Nope. She explicitly told us to meet her here. The matter is rather urgent. Why isn't she here?"

"Oh. Tracey _Davis_! I know her. In fact . . ." she put down the magazine. "I am her." She grinned. "Got you, didn't I?"

Malfoy rolled his eyes. "Real mature," he muttered.

"Hey, this job is boring. I need to have a little fun, don't I?"

"There is nothing fun about my son being murdered. Did you schedule a hearing?" she nodded. "Good. When is it?"

Tracey checked her watch. "Right now."

* * *

><p>Day 3<p>

15: 32

Hugo sat in his cousin's lap, nervously bouncing up and down.

"You're getting way too old for this," James moaned, trying to keep his tone lighthearted. He did not fool his cousin for a moment.

For a ten-year-old, Hugo, contrary to what his name may have suggested, was extremely small. A sufferer of mild muscular atrophy, (a condition similar too, although not quite as severe as muscular dystrophy,) his growth was stunted and he lacked muscle mass. Most people who did not know Hugo would have thought him to be six or seven-year-old at the oldest. He drank a special potion three times a day to allow the condition from progressing and was expected to live a normal life expectancy.

Hugo's small, slender frame, long delicate eyelashes, and a mini afro of curly red hair gave him a slightly feminine appearance, earning him the nickname "princess", which he absolutely detested.

For the most part, he was his sister's polar opposite. Hugo was a quiet well-manered child who usually kept to himself, spending hours each day devouring book after book. He was doing just that at that very moment as he sat in James's lap. His book of choice? _Oliver Twist_, by Charles Dickens. Quite a feat for a boy of his age!

James had been dropped off at his Aunt and Uncle's house for the afternoon, while his parents went to court for some reason. They had refused to give further detail about what they were doing, and no matter how much he tried, he couldn't get Ron or Hermione to further elaborate for him.

Hugo had taken great comfort in his cousin's visit, and promptly made himself comfortable on the boy's lap. James protested, but only half-heartedly.

For over an hour, the two sat in silence. Hugo with his book, James with his guilty conscience. Despite what his parents told him, he kept thinking the same thing over and over again: it's all my fault.

why had he been so stupid? He'd abandoned his family when they needed him, and now if they were dead he would be the one responsible. How would he ever be able to live with himself?

"Are you crying?" Hugo asked, upon seeing the tears in his eyes. James shook his head. "Yes, you are crying," he decided. "Here," Hugo pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to his cousin. He returned to the book.

James sniffled silently for several minutes, being rather embarrassed. He didn't like crying in front of other people. He had a reputation to keep, after all. He was glad Hugo didn't press the matter.

"It's not your fault, you know," he whispered.

Spoke too soon.

"What isn't?"

"What happened on the trip . . . there was nothing you could have done. 'We should regret our mistakes and learn from them never carry them into the future with us'," the little boy said solemnly. "L.M. Montgomery said that."

Hugo's wisdom never ceased to amaze James, even if it was another person's words. How had he known what he was thinking? He nodded, and forced himself not to cry again.

"It was kind of obvious," replied Hugo, once again reading his cousin's mind. "When something bad and tragic happens that someone had something to do with, but managed to get out of relatively unscathed, they immediately feel a large burden of guilt. This because they think it should have been them instead."

"Wow. Who said that?"

He smirked. "I did."

* * *

><p>Day 3<p>

17: 41

Every minute that passed only seemed to drag Albus and Lily further and further down into hell. Rose had long passed the point of caring and had resorted to repeatedly running into the snow walls, hoping to break them free. She had actually resorted to taking OFF some of her layers, claiming that she was too hot. Scorpius looked blankly at his friends in his semi-conscious state and batted the air with his hands, as if catching invisible butterflies, muttering something about his grandfather and purple bananas. Later that night he fell asleep, and no matter how many times Albus and Lily shook him, their friend would not wake. The fact that he was still breathing was little comfort, for they knew if Malfoy did not get medical help soon, he was as good as dead.

It was then, Lily had her epiphany. "Wait a minute," she said. "I forgot!" She opened one of the inside pockets to her jacket and grinned, pulling out a rectangular bar. "It's a breakfast bar. I brought it in case I'd get hungry."

Rose jerked her head towards her cousin. The girl's nostrils twitched like a bloodhound on a trail. "FOOD!" she exclaimed.

Albus, too, had a similar reaction, and tried to drag himself towards his sister. He knew it was wrong, but he just couldn't help it. HE WAS SO DAMN HUNGRY!

Even Scorpius seemed to smile in his sleep, and reached his hand out at nothing in particular.

Lily hunched over and tried to shield her food. "No!" she shouted. "You can't have it! It's MINE!" She began unwrapping the snack as quickly as her little fingers could manage, and attempted to shove the entire thing into her mouth.

Before she could, however, Rose pounced on the girl, and snatched the breakfast bar out of her hand. Lily started to cry and Rose laughed.

"G-give it back!" She pleaded. "We could . . . we could share."

"_We cowld shawre_," Rose repeated in a mocking voice.

Albus, despited the burning sensation in his ankle, kicked his cousin, causing the bar to fly out of her hands. The three children watched as their only source of food (seemingly in slow motion) fell inside of an ice crack.

"NO!" Rose screamed.

There was no warning, no gradual build up, nothing. In a split second, the cave which had once been there icy prison was on fire! Albus could feel the heat, but the ice would not melt. Instinctively, he ran for his cousin, grabbing a handful of snow and throwing in into the flames, hoping to dull them. He heard Rose laugh, and realized with horror that his cousin was on the other side of the fire.

"Rose!" He squinted, trying to see through the smoke and struggled to breathe. To his horror, not only was Rose in the fire, she was causing it! The flames erupted from the girl's hands, not appearing to cause her any pain whatsoever. Albus didn't know much about wantless magic, but this had to be a pretty powerful spell.

"Are you mad?" he shouted, trying not to gag as he inhaled the poison fumes. "You'll kill us all!"

Lily shrieked as a fireball was thrown in her direction, but managed to duck just in time. The fire hit the ice wall and disappeared.

"Scorpius!" Albus cried, seeing his friend, slumped on the ground and not moving. Without thinking, he ran over and grabbed the boy's hand, pulling him out of the flames and into safety, at least for the time being.

Al was finding it harder and harder to breathe. He felt his head grow heavy as he struggled to stay alert. But the idea of joining Scorpius was so tempting . . .

No, he had to stay focused.

". . . Rose, please," he begged. " . . . _please_ . . . ."

He didn't know if the desperation in his voice awoke something in the girl, or perhaps she merely became overwhelmed by the spell and completely drained, but suddenly, to flames began to shrink. They continued to do so until only a small ball of fire circled Rose's left hand, only her immunity to the flames seemed to vanish.

Albus would never forget the scream his cousin let out. Blood curtailing and painful to listen to, Rose let out at least a dozen to them.

The sight was horrible but Albus could not bring himself to look away as the flames ate away at his cousin's flesh. Her hand turned red and blistery, then black, then white, then black again and the skin began to whither away, rendering it terribly mutilated.

It should have come as obvious, but it was not until Rose's hand had suffered third and fourth degree burns when he screamed. "The snow, Rose! The SNOW!"

Rose nodded and threw her hand not the snow. The fire vanished, but her hand was still smoking. Al could smell the stench of burning flesh in the air.

Tentatively, for he was still a bit worried about her sanity, he crawled over to her. The look in Rose's eyes was no longer one of a madwoman. Instead they were filled with tremendous pain, pain that Albus could not even begin to imagine.

"Well," Rose said, chuckling slightly. "At least I'm right-handed." And with that, she fell to the ground, out-cold.

Albus checked her pulse, relieved that she was still alive, but he knew this would not be the case for long. "Lily," he said, turning to his terrified sister, "nobody's coming to get us." Albus had known this to be the case for a while, and in all likelihood, so had Lily. But now that he had actually said the words they seemed to hold a gravity that they didn't when merely sitting in his head. Albus choked back tears as he said the next words, but knew in his heart that it was the only way. "The hole's gotten bigger," he said, his voice hoarse. "I need you to climb out of it and go get help. I'll stay stay here with Rose and Scorpius. Find anybody and bring them back here. Do you understand, Lily?"

"But . . . but . . . I don't know where to go! I can't leave Al, I'm . . . I'm scared! You go!"

"I can't, my ankle's broken, or at least sprained. Lily, I need you to be brave, just pretend this is a game. Lily . . . Lily, look at me."

She met her brother's eyes, both of which were filled with tears. Lily's lower lip trembled, but a silent understanding seemed to pass between them. They had grown a lot in the past few days, and both knew that it was the only way.

"I'll be back with help," she promised. Lily ran over and gave her brother a quick hug before exiting through the hole. She got stuck halfway and had to have Albus push her through.

He watched as his sister limped away into the distance, knowing that the chances of her finding anyone were slim. He almost called out to ask her to come back. But he didn't. Instead, Albus watched silently until Lily was no longer in sight. He took a deep breath. Had he made a mistake? What if somebody came back and Lily wasn't there? How would they know to find them? What if Lily got lost on her way back?

No. No, he couldn't afford to think that way. Everything would work out for the best. Everything _had_ to.

Albus knew that if his sister did not return he would never forgive himself.

* * *

><p><strong>Wow, I'm twisted. <strong>  
><strong>Anyway, this is probably the second or third to last chapter, so things will be wrapping up pretty soon. <strong>

**But that does not, by any means, give you guys an excuse not to review! **

**. . . Please?**


	8. Chapter 8

**Book_worm_loves_harry_potter: Thank you so much. **

**hedgi: Thanks, I try really hard to make them believable.**

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**fire_it_up: Okay, I guess it wasn't a quick update, but hopefully you'll be satisfied now. Thanks for reviewing.**

* * *

><p>Day 3:<p>

18: 52

With every step Lily took, she knew that she was moving closer and closer to death. She shivered vigorously from head to toe, trying with extreme desperation just to retain what little body heat she had left.

Lily looked around. All she could see was snow for miles on end. Snow. Snow. Snow. No houses. No roads. No people. Unable to hold back any longer, Lily started to cry, but the tears soon froze on her face.

She looked at her hand once again, for perhaps the five hundredth time since she had left the cave. The appendage was no longer recognizable as her own. Her fingers had changed from a dark purple to a sickening night black. The lower part of her hand was a little better, appearing red and blistery for the most part, with bits of purple flesh here and there. She shuddered and supressed the overwhelming urge to vomit, although at this point, she wasn't sure if there was actually anything left for her to throw up.

A haunting thought in the back of her consciousness reminded her that a rescue team might come and rescue her brother and she would be nowhere to be found. Still, the thought was unlikely. Lily had seen the sign, or rather, what was left of it. As she had left, Lily had snuck a glance at what looked like a small blood stain in the snow. No rescue team would notice it. She knew in her heart that she was their only hope. A depressing thought, really.

So far she had seen nothing that even resembled life - human, or animal. Lily knew that if she was to make any sort of progress, she was going to have to go twice as fast as her current pace. But she could hardly make herself move. How could she - - Lily stopped and looked down at the skis and poles she was carrying. Of course! Why didn't she thinking of it before?

Lily grinned for the first time in days as she tightened her goggles and stepped into the thin, metal boards. It was time to go to the rescue, cross country style.

* * *

><p>"I wonder what Mum and Dad are doing," James wondered aloud. Maybe they weren't really in court. Perhaps thats just what they told him so that he would not be tempted to follow them. That meant that his parents thought whatever they were doing would truly upset him. "How could I possibly get anymore miserable?" James mumbled bitterly.<p>

"The ceiling could collapse right on top of us, killing me and sparing you without so much as a scratch," Hugo said helpfully. "You'll begin to think that you're a bad luck magnet and try to avoid human interaction. Eventually you will die as a sad and lonely hermit, having given up family life from a fear of accidentally getting them all killed."

James jumped. "I thought you have fallen asleep! Never mind, what was that all about?"

The little boy blinked in confusion. "I was answering your question," he replied as if it were obvious. "You asked how you could possibly get anymore miserable."

"Oh. The question was rhetorical. You don't have to take everything literally, you know."

"I know. It's just easier that way," he returned to his book, deciding that the conversation was apparently over. In actuality, James would have liked to talk for a little longer, but he did not push his cousin. Hugo was bright, but hard to talk to.

His mind returned to fantasizing about his parents' predicament. Maybe they were organizing more search parties. But why wouldn't they bring him along? He supposed it was possible that they wanted him to keep Hugo company. James couldn't help but suppress a giggle. Company was the last thing Hugo Weasley needed. He had seen seen his cousin eat through book after book after book for hours on end, not so much as looking up to acknowledge anyone in the room unless spoken directly to.

It was more likely that his parents were actually doing something extremely depressing, like planning his siblings' funerals.

Of course, there was the off chance that they were actually in court. But what were the odds of that?

* * *

><p>"Where were you on January 4, 2019?"<p>

Harry rolled his eyes. In a muggle court this would never stand. "I was in Switzerland with my wife, children, two of my brother and sisters-in-laws, and their kids on a skiing trip. My son Albus also brought along his friend Scorpius Malfoy."

Tracey Davis straightened her glasses. On most days she preferred contact lenses (she was a half-blood by heritage, the idea of contacts was unheard of in the wizard world) but generally wore her shades on court days. They made her look more professional.

Personally, she didn't think this case stood a chance. But, like Malfoy had said, if anyone could pull it off, she could.

Tracey fixed her icy blue eyes upon Potter. He really looked terrible. His green eyes were sunken and bloodshot from a lack of sleep and his untidy hair was even messier than usual. But Davis was not known for being a sympathetic individual. "Where are the children now?"

Harry paused. For a moment, it seemed that he would cry. Quickly, he regained his composure. "Angelina and George's children, Roxanne and Fred are at their home. Ron and Hermione's son Hugo is also at home, with my son James. As for the others, as you _very well know_, they are missing."

"Missing and presumed dead," she added. Several of the jurors shot Harry glances of sympathy. She paid them no attention.

Harry, unable to conjure up speech, nodded feebly.

there was a pause. All eyes were on Potter. "That is what I thought. Now, if I understand correctly, shortly before you left, you told Mr. Malfoy's parents that you guaranteed the boy would be safe?"

". . . Yes, I did."

"You said, and I quote 'I swear that no matter what, I will not harm a hair on your son's head. I will bring him back on time and he will have had the time of his life.'" Tracey smirked. She knew this would not mean much in a muggle court of law. But in the wizard world, a promise held great gravity, and was always taken seriously.

Maybe, just maybe, they stood a chance after all.

* * *

><p>Day 3:<p>

20: 48

"She's dead. I know she is. Oh, Merlin help me, I've killed my sister!"

"Do you mind?" Rose said irritably. "Some of us are trying to sleep."

Albus jumped slightly. He had thought his cousin was still out cold. "How could you possibly sleep at a time like this? Lily could be in trouble, or worse. Scorpius is as good as dead, and you freaking just about got your hands burned off!"

Rose looked at her blistered skin in fascination and began to pick away at it.

"Rose, stop it!"

His cousin shrugged. "It doesn't hurt. The nerve endings are cut off. And I'm only getting rid of the parts that are already falling off. See?" She tugged at one of her fingers. The skin was unnaturally white. Albus felt about ready to vomit, but he could not bring himself to look away as Rose held the piece of detached skin to her face and sniffed it.

"Rose - Don't! Stop! Oh my lord, that is disgusting!" Al, now coming to his senses, covered his eyes and gagged.

"I'm starving! Besides, like I said, it doesn't hurt."

While still mad, it seemed that Rose had become aware once again. Now, instead of a raving sociopath who thought everyone else was mad, she seemed to have simply accepted the fact that she had gone crazy. Albus wasn't sure which was more upsetting.

When told about her previous state, Rose had seemed genuinely shocked and disgusted with herself, claiming that she did not remember a thing before the flames. Albus couldn't tell if she was being truthful, or simply trying to fool herself in order to hang on to the last shred of sanity within her reach.

Al began to feel abnormally hot, which confused him. Shouldn't he have been feeling the other way? He began to unbutton his coat, when Rose turned around.

"What are you doing?" she demanded.

"I'm just taking off my coat. It's hot in here, don't you think?"

"No!" she slapped Albus across the face. "Undo one more button and I will personally see that you are skinned alive and your pelt is hanged on the wall. Do you understand? What you're doing is called paradoxical undressing in hypothermia victims. It's when you're body fools itself into thinking its hot and then the person gets naked an dies. And you are NOT dying on me, Mister!"

How did on earth she know all this stuff? "I wasn't going to get_ naked_," he mumbled. "I just wanted to take off my coat."

Rose paid him no attention, instead she returned her concentration to her hands. After Rose tore off her third piece of skin, Albus, unable to watch it any longer, said, "Please don't do anymore, Rose. I couldn't bear it."

Rose shrugged, seeming mildly annoyed by her cousin's squeamishness. "For your sake, I'll stop. Or at least not do it in front of you." Her eyes shifted to Scorpius. "How's our friend fairing?"

"Not good. He's ice cold and not responding to anything. I can't wake him up." Albus heard his voice cracking as he spoke.

"That's bad," Rose agreed. She turned away from her cousin and stared at the ground. She made her way over to Scorpius and stroked his face. He heard quiet suppressed sniffling sounds. Even though she was facing away from Albus, he knew exactly what was happening.

Rose quickly regained herself and the sniffling sounds stopped. For several long moments there was a deafening silence. Albus, determined to break it, asked meekly, "Does he have a pulse?"

Rose nodded, still refusing to face her cousin. "But not for long. Lily better get help soon."

"You honestly think she'll be able to find somebody?"

She shrugged. "You never know. There's the off chance she may get lucky, but I'd say the odds are very much against us." It annoyed Albus how calm she sounded. Didn't she care that she was about to die? Or at the very least if she wasn't going to think of herself, didn't she care about her friends and family who were also going to die? What about her parents, at home sick with worry? Or him, lying on the floor of an ice cave with a twisted ankle? Or Lily. Poor Lily. She must have been terrified, out there all alone.

Albus looked to his cousin. He needed reassurance. "Do you think I did the right thing in sending her out?"

To his surprise, Rose threw back her head and laughed. Steadily it grew louder into a mad guffaw. For a moment, Albus feared that she had once again slipped into insanity. "You claim that I just tried to eat you all and you're asking me about_ morals?_"

* * *

><p>Day 3:<p>

21: 07

"Help! Help!" Lily cried until her voice was hoarse. At this point she had lost all feeling in her legs and was dragging herself forward through sheer willpower, and even that was slowly fading. More than once, Lily had to stop and rest. And every time she stopped, Lily feared that she would not have the energy to get back up again. Many a times she burst down into tears. She was scared. Scared for herself. Scared for her brother. Scared for her friends. They were as good as dead if she didn't get them help.

Lily continued to trudge the hazardous terrain even after it grew dark. Unable to see where she was going, Lily tried to guide herself via the stars. Her Aunt Hermione had told her stories of muggles lost at sea who were able to guide themselves to shore by looking at the North Star. Lily didn't know which one was the North Star, but she was able to recognize certain patterns in the sky.

As the night wore on, Lily began to feel oddly warm. No, not warm. Boiling hot. Why was she hot? That didn't even make sense! And yet she felt as though she were inside one of Rose's fireballs. Needless to say, it was not a pleasant feeling. So Lily did the thing that seemed most logical: she began to undress herself.

Lily began by taking off her scarf and gloves. Then, she removed her coat. Afterwards, still feeling surprisingly warm, she took off her shirt and lower her pants so that she only wore a tank top an underwear.

Lily breathed a sigh of relief, feeling much better. The snow looked awfully soft. It was almost like it was inviting her for a nap. Surely a few minutes of rest wouldn't do anything. She could continue her search afterwards.

That settled, Potter laid down in the snow and closed her eyes. She sank into it like a fluffy mattress and before Lily knew it, she was fast asleep. Still wearing nothing but her underwear.

* * *

><p><strong>As our tale draws to a closure, the author would like to thank everybody who has supported me through this story through reviews. Wait, why is the author speaking about herself in third person?<strong>

**Either way, please review.**


	9. Chapter 9

**A big thank you to Hedgi, Guest, and Idizzle_22 for reviewing!**

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><p>Day 4:<p>

11:16

Lily was awoken by a loud, high-pitched scream.

"_Hey, Gunther, fand ich etwas. Oh mein Gott, es ist ein kleines Mädchen die Leiche!_"

Another voice, this one more gruff and masculine in tone, replied to the first. "_Du Lügner! Lassen Sie mich sehen._" Lily tried to sit up or at least open her eyes, but to her horror found that she could not move a muscle.

"_Was haben wir damit zu tun, Gunther?_"

"_Ich glaube, sie bewegt!_" _Oh, Merlin. Somebody help me! I'm trapped in the snow and I can't move! Help! Help!_ Lily cried out silently, hoping that the people could somehow magically read her thoughts.

"_Seien Sie nicht lächerlich. Sie ist so kalt wie Eis._" Lily felt something press against her face. It was a hand! Gathering all of the energy she could muster, Lily forced a small groan and opened her eyes a crack. Two people were kneeling over her. They appeared relatively young, perhaps in their mid-twenties. They were muggles, no doubt. One was a boy wearing a hat that covered most of his hair. The other was a girl with long blond hair pulled back in a neat plait. Both wore ski gear and looked like tourists.

"_Sie ist wach! Sind Sie okay, kleines Mädchen?_"

"_Natürlich ist sie nicht okay! Schauen Sie sich ihre Hand. Sie braucht ärztliche Hilfe. Wir müssen sie sofort zu einem Arzt weg!_"

"I'm s-sorry," Lily said. Her voice was hoarse and her words barely intelligible, even to her. "Sorry, I don't speak . . . whatever." _Swiss wasn't a language, was it? Maybe German._ The two appeared not to have heard her, and continued arguing in their foreign tongue. "Hey!" Lily protested loudly as the man scooped her up into his arms. The girl took off her outer jacket and wrapped it around Lily's freezing body.

"Ve are taking you to a doctor," she said, speaking English with an accent that Lily could not quite place. Or maybe she could. At this point Lily's thoughts were too jumbled to really understand what was going on.

Then it hit her.

_Oh no._

"My brother!" Lily cried. "You have to take me back! I told Albus that I would get him help! No! No, put me down! We need to go back and find them! They need help!"

The boy looked at the girl helplessly, who just shrugged. "Sorry," she said. "I do not speak very good English."

"My brother and friends are trapped. We need to go back and save them!" Lily repeated, as if saying it a second time would make them understand. But she knew it was no use. As they continued to walk, Lily kicked and screamed in Gunther's arms, but the man held her tightly and she could not escape. Soon Lily grew exhausted from her own antics and fell asleep in the man's arms, only to awake on a stretcher in a white room, covered almost completely in blankets. Hearing a pair of footsteps, she quickly shut her eyes.

"I'm telling you, it's astounding. Had the young couple not found her, she would have been dead in hours."

"Well, the press is outside and they're restless. Do we know her name yet?"

"No. The couple found her in just her underwear with severe frostbite and hypothermia. She was unconscious when they brought her here and she had no means of identification on her. They told me to treat her, since I am the only English-born doctor here, they figured it would make her more comfortable when she got up."

"When will she wake up?"

"It's hard to say. To be quite frank, I'm surprised that she was conscious when they found her. Most would be in a coma at this point. And look at this," Lily opened her eyes the smallest possible amount and caught a glimpse of a man standing over her, examining her hand. "A good amount of the tissue has healed itself. I have never seen anything like it. Normally at this stage the flesh would have lost all blood flow and connection to the rest of the body, rendering it dead. But in her case, it appears that somehow the flesh regenerated itself. It's honestly nothing short of a miracle."

"Sir, sir! We got a call back from the resort next door. Just before you were stationed a group of four youths went missing. The girl seems to fit the description. Red hair, freckles . . ."

"What were their names?"

"Lily. Rose. Albus, and some other weird named. Scorpion or something."

"It's Scorpius," Lily mumbled, opening her eyes all the way. The three adult stared at her. "What's going on?" she demanded. "Where am I?"

"Are you Rose?"  
>"No. No, I'm Lily." Lily sat up and immediately felt dizzy. "I want to go home. Oh god, have they found the others?"<p>

The man looked sad. "Not yet, I'm afraid. If you can give us any information on them, any at all, then-"

"They're in a snow cave. Look for something with what looks like a bloodstain over it. better yet, just let me help find it. I'll show you where they are."

The man shook his head sadly. "Lily, you should stay here where we can treat you. At the moment you are in no condition to travel, I'm sorry."

"No!" Lily began sobbing. "No, I need to find them! I-I promised Albus that I would."

"Excuse me, Doctor Hanbury," a head peaked through the door. The woman spoke relatively good English, but with a noticeable accent. "Oh, thank the lord the girl is awake!" she turned back to Hanbury. "I tried to contact the girl's parents. Neither have cell phones, so I tried their home number. Nobody was there, so I left a message. Is there anyone else I can call?"

"Yes!" Lily shouted suddenly. "Aunt Ron and Uncle Hermione . . . I mean . . . Uncle Ron and Aunt . . . whatever. I know their number. It's . . ."

* * *

><p>Much like a young woman after a particularly bad break-up, James had planted himself on the sofa of his Aunt's muggle room and after raiding the cabinets for snack food, stared at the television set for nearly six hours watching reruns of <em>The Simpsons<em>. Hugo was beginning his ninth book of the week.

The sound was small. Had they not been in the muggle room where it was located, there is good chance that it would have gone unnoticed. But as fate would have it, both boys heard it. It was the telephone.

James picked it up. "Hello?" he asked hesitantly. His cousin watched him curiously. "Yes it is. No, I'm his nephew. Who is this? Really? Oh my god! Oh my god! Yes, yes of course! Thank you!" He hung up and immediately attacked his cousin in a bear hug. "It's Lily! They found her!"

"What about the others?"

James stopped. The woman on the phone hadn't mentioned the others. "I don't know. But . . . but we have to tell the others!"

"How?" he proposed. "We don't know where they are. It's not like they own cellular phones or anything. We have no means of contacting them. I suppose we could wait until they return, but who knows how long that could be?"  
>Leave it to Hugo to turn what would have otherwise been the world's happiest occasion into a logic-based nightmare. Sometimes James really hated that kid.<p>

"Goddamn you, Hugo Weasley."

"I love you, too, James Potter."

"Grrr."

* * *

><p>"Hey, Rose?"<p>

"Yeah?"  
>"I was wondering . . . never mind, it's stupid."<p>

His cousin shrugged nonchalantly. "Okay."

Albus stared at his purple hands. "Rose, do you believe in an afterlife?"

Her answer was less than helpful. "I dunno. Maybe. Maybe not. Come to think of it, probably not. We'll find out soon, I guess, though."

Albus cringed. "Rose, do you think that you could fit through that hole? I can't walk and we can't send Scorpius, but maybe . . ."

"Al, what in Merlin's name makes you think that I would have a better chance than Lily did? Just forget it." She turned to Scorpius. "Is he still . . . ?"

Albus nodded, barely holding back tears. "Even if we do get help do you think he'll pull through?"

Rose opened her mouth as if to say no, but then paused and thought for a moment. "I wouldn't put it past him," she said slowly, a small smile appearing on her face. "That boy has surprised us plenty of times before."

* * *

><p>"I called back an hour later like you said. The boy doesn't know how to reach her parents or his own for that matter, what do we do?"<p>

Lily lifted her head sleepily. "Who's on the phone? Can I talk to him?"

"Just a minute, hold on. Here she is," the telephone was held up next to Lily.

"Hugo? James?"

"Oh, come on! I was your second guess!" James laughed nervously on the other end, then became instantly serious. "Are you okay, Lily? Where are the others? How did you get out?"

"In the ice cave. They're still there. I t-told Albus I would go and get help . . ." she began to sob.

"No! No, don't cry, Lily. It's okay. Everything's okay. Hey, don't worry, we'll find them." There was a muffled voice in the background. "SHUT UP, HUGO! NOBODY ASKED YOU'RE OPINION. Anyway, we're going to find them. And as soon as Mum and Dad get back, they'll come right over. There's nothing to worry about, Lily. OKAY, YOU KNOW WHAT, MISTER? I WANT YOU TO STAND IN THE CORNER OVER THERE. YES, I MOST CERTAINLY _DO_ HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO TELL YOU THAT. WHO'S THE BABYSITTER HERE, AGAIN? ALRIGHT, NOW YOU'RE JUST BEING SMART. THAT'S RIGHT TURN AROUND. ALL THE WAY, HUGO. I WANT YOU TO STAY THERE FOR FIVE MINUTES." Lily smiled and giggled in spite of herself.

James came on a few seconds later. "Sorry about that. But, seriously, it's going to be fine. Just you watch."

"B-but I was supposed to get help. He trusted me! And now they're not letting me go with the search party to look for them. I feel terrible."

Don't feel guilty about what happened. You did the right thing. It's not your fault in any way. And don't think I'm just saying that, 'kay? You were really brave for going out there and Mum and Dad will say the same thing. I'll find a way to contact them."

Lily sniffled. "Thank, James."

"No problem. . . OH YEAH? WELL SO IS YOUR FACE! IT DOESN'T NEED TO MAKE SENSE! AND DIDN'T I TELL YOU TO STAND IN THE CORNER? NO, YOU CANNOT BRING JANE AUSTEN OR ANY OF YOUR OTHER IMAGINARY GIRLFRIENDS WITH YOU. DON'T MAKE ME GO OVER THERE . . . gotta go, Lily. I have some business to handle." The line wet dead.

_"Honestly,"_ the woman muttered to the doctor, apparently not realizing that the conversation had ended. She spoke to Hanbury in French, but Lily had learned enough of the language from her cousins to understand. _"What kind of parent doesn't have a cell phone. They should at least buy one when their child is missing. If I was that girl's parent, I'd be hovering over that phone for weeks!"_

"It's not their fault," Lily said, catching the woman by surprise. "I know they're looking for me." She sat up in bed. "I'm feeling much better, Dr. Hanbury. Can I help look for my brother and cousin now?"

When the doctor shook his head, Lily pounded her fist on the side of the bed and screamed. "Why won't you let me look for them? Only I know where to look! You need to let me at least _try_."

* * *

><p>Day 4:<p>

18: 43

"Rose? Rosie, he's awake!"

"He is?" Weasley scrambled over to her friend. Scorpius was sitting up with Albus's support. Rose's eyes filled with tears. "Oh my god, he's awake! He's awake, Al!" she hugged Malfoy tightly to her chest, still sobbing happily.

"How are you feeling, mate?"

There was no response. Scorpius just stared straight ahead. Albus waved his hand in front of his face and clapped. The boy did not so much as blink.

Al propped him up against the wall. "I saw him open his eyes by himself, I swear! Scorpius, is this some kind of joke? If it is, I am going to kill you!"

Scorpius said nothing.

"ARGGHH!" Rose screamed at a decibel that Albus had not even thought humanly possible. Without warning, he launched herself at Malfoy and began punching him repeatedly.

"Rose, no!"

Scorpius, now seeming to be slowly waking up, responded sluggishly to her assault in a series of hopeless attempts to defend himself while Albus did his best to pull apart his cousin from the poor boy.

"Wait, Rose! I think I hear something!"

Sure enough, there were mumbling voices above, followed by barking and the sound of cracking ice. A pair of men peered at the kids. "Who screamed?" one asked, narrowing his eyes.

Albus pointed to Rose.

"Well, it's a good thing you did. We were about to search for you in the other direction."

* * *

><p><strong>This is probably the second or third to last chapter. This has been a really fun story to write and hopefully it was fun for you to read. Please review to say what you thought of it.<strong>


	10. Chapter 10

**A bit thank you to Hedgi, Meagan Snow, and Idizzle for reviewing. This will be the last chapter. So, enjoy!**

* * *

><p>The second time it rang, Hugo was the one who picked up the phone. James tried to reach for it, but his cousin quickly dodged the other boy's hand. "Hello. No, this is his cousin. What? That's great news! I'll be sure to alert them right away . . . true . . . well, I'll find a way. Thank you so much. You too, bye." He hung up.<p>

The happy look that Hugo gave his cousin at that very moment was enough to spread joy and peace in the Middle East and cause all of the world leaders to join together holding hands and singing kumbaya. He jumped up into James's arms who immediately returned the hug; no words needed to be exchanged, the news was clear: they had been found and all was well. When Hugo finally let go he saw that his cousin had tears in his eyes. Normally, at this point he would crack a wise comment, but there really was no point now, for the tears were mutual.

"We need to get our parents."

"Malfoy's too."

"Yeah . . . whatever."

The question was, of course, how? The Ministry would never let in a couple of minors enter a courtroom, regardless of their status. It was then Hugo had an epiphany. "The Scamanders live nearby, don't they?"

". . . Yes." James failed to see where he was going with this.

"Come on," he said, motioning for the older boy to follow. "You get our coats, I'll get Darwin."

"Hugo, what are you-" but the little boy had sprinted upstairs to get "Darwin". Darwin was the name of Hugo's little, red wagon that he insisted on dragging everywhere with him outside of the house. The wagon alway contained at least books that Hugo was in the middle of reading so that he would have something to do if he got bored in whatever location they were visiting. Hermione didn't want him carrying too many things at once because she was worried that it would strain his arm muscles. Rose constantly teased him about the wagon, claiming that he slept with it.

Still, James knew better than to argue, and he quickly got on his shoes and jumper. When Hugo met him at the door, the two left a brief note and ran down the street to their friends' house.

"Rolf is still probably on his trip to the Netherlands," Hugo explained, struggling to catch his breath as he ran. "But with any luck, Luna will be home." Hugo rolled his eyes. It was quite apparent that Hugo (and to a lesser extent, his sister) found the former Lovegood annoying in her beliefs. Hugo in particular always had a difficult time keeping a straight face when she spoke of Moon Frogs and Dabberblimps.

When they reached the house, Hugo banged on the door with his tiny fists in what looked like a hysterical fit. "Come on! Open up!"

The door opened and a small figure dressed in pajamas yawned. "Do you mind?" he said. "Some of us are trying to sleep!"

"It's four in the afternoon," James pointed out.

The little boy gave him an odd look as if to say, _What's your point? _Then the boy turned to Hugo. "What do you want?"

"Lorcan, is your mum home?"

"I'm _Lysander._"

"Whatever. Look, this is really important. We need to talk to your mum right now."

Lysander sighed. "Come in, then. But stay yourself first." He handed them a bottle. "Grandad had this tested to guarantee extermination of ninety-nine point nine percent of wrackspurt infections." He gave Hugo a sly smile. "Knowing you, you'll need it."

* * *

><p>As soon as they arrived at the resort's hospital, the children were immediately laid on rolling beds and examined by a ferocious group of doctors. "The boy has a broken ankle and mild to moderate hypothermia, but otherwise seems to be stable condition. The girl has moderate hypothermia and frostbite. She and the boy are both dehydrated." He squinted at Rose. "She also appears to have inexplicable second-degree burns on her body," Dr. Hanbury observed. He looked at Rose very seriously. "How did you get these burns?"<p>

Rose replied in a shaky voice, "W-we had a couple of matches and tried to start a fire, but . . . but it didn't go so well." She held her breath and glanced nervously at the doctor, wondering if he would believe her story. When he nodded she breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'm worried about the boy," reported another doctor. "He shows signs of severe hypothermia and stupor. He's not responding to anything but intense stimuli."

"Will he be okay?" asked Rose. The doctors ignored her, which Rose did not appreciate. "Hey! Hey, I'm talking to you people!" They turned, surprised. "He's going to be okay, right?"

There was a pause. "You need some rest, young lady. Willard, take her to the other room."

"When can I see my sister?" asked Albus.

Hanbury's response was gentle and slow. "She is sleeping right now, but soon, boy. Don't worry. She's been asking about you constantly."

"And my parents?"

Another pause. "Your cousin, Mr. Hugo, is going to contact them. You seem perplexed boy, why?"

"Nothing. Just tired, is all."

"I understand. Why don't you get some rest?"

He nodded. But as Albus was being wheeled away on the roller bed, a thousand thoughts raced through his mind. Why weren't his parents waiting at the telephone. Had they given up hope already? Had they just taken them for dead and moved on with their daily lives? Had there even been a funeral? One without a body, he supposed. How would they have felt afterwards. Maybe they were relieved. Glad that the matter was finally closed. Maybe they were already using his bedroom for storage.

Would they even want him back? The thought seemed ridiculous, but after everything he had been through, it wouldn't surprise Albus in the least. He wanted to see Lily, even if he couldn't talk to her. He just wanted to make sure that she was okay. Why couldn't he see her? Had his sister died and they didn't want to break the news to him? A feeling of sudden panic rushed down his spine. Oh Merlin, was she okay?

Suddenly, he sat up and despite the doctors' warnings, attempted to make a break for it. Stumbling on his weak ankle and beginning to feel rather dizzy, Albus managed to make it to the door but struggled to turn the handle with his clumsy fingers. Eventually, his legs gave out and the doctors rushed to return him to his cot.

Rose grinned. "You must be exhausted," she said.

"Why do you say that?" he asked, stifling a yawn.

His cousin pointed to a sign. "The door you tried to open led to the cleaning supplies."

* * *

><p>To say the courtroom was surprised to see a ghostly rabbit enter the room is an understatement. When they witnessed the rabbit hop towards Potter and open its mouth to speak, things quickly descended into chaos.<p>

"What is the meaning of this?"

"This is a courtroom not a . . . a rabbit house!"

Among the numerous grumpy old men waving their fists in the air, Harry leaned in and was able to hear the words of Luna Lovegood's patronus. "All is well. The children are safe and in a muggle hospital."

The few others who managed to make out the apparition's speech quickly began mumbling amongst themselves excitedly.

"Well," said Ron, standing up from the witness stand and grinning. "I guess there's no need for trial. I say meeting adjourned." He was met with cheers from the reporters and jury. Hermione, Ginny, and Harry seemed to agree and quickly followed the redhead out the door.

They were not the only ones who heard.

"Grab my arm, darling," whispered Malfoy.

"No, you idiot!" Astoria hissed, slapping him on the wrist. "We can't. Imagine what would happen if the two of us just appear out of nowhere in the middle of muggle Switzerland? We're on thin ice with the Ministry as it is, we cannot have another scandal, do you understand me?"

"Well, what do you want me to do? Just stand here for a few days and _wait_ for my son to return? Are you mad?"

"Of course not," she replied. "I want to see him as much as you do. I have a plan. Oi, Potter! Wait up!"

* * *

><p>The first place they went was Godric's Hollow to pick up Hugo and James, congratulating the two of them on thinking to send a patronus. And several uncomfortable hours on an airplane later, James, Hugo, Harry, Ginny, Ron, Hermione, Draco, and Astoria burst into the hospital demanding to see their children. None of the parents wanted to wait another second and were less than thrilled when they were told to hold on for a few minutes. Grudgingly, they did so.<p>

Finally, a nurse entered the waiting room. Her nametag read: Sophie Gillard. "You actually _are_ their parents, correct? We already said that we don't want anymore reporters."

"We are."

Sophie nodded. "Very well. But I'll need to see some ID."

Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Hermione handed their muggle identification over. Hermione shot her husband a haughty glance. Years ago, she had insisted that they get their muggle IDs, even though Ron saw no purpose for them.

The nurse turned to Malfoys with a confused expression. "No ID, then?"

Hermione pulled out her wand from her boot and muttered a spell.

"Excellent," the nurse said, "go right in."

Malfoy gave Hermione a curt nod. Even now, his pride did not allow him to do anything more.

"Excuse me," Hermione said to a doctor, "I am here to see my son. Where is Rose Weasley?"

The man instructed him to go down the hallway and go two doors to the left. The others followed her example. Ginny was furious to hear that her children were in separate rooms and Harry feared that she would explode in anger. Luckily for him, though, she managed to retain herself. They debated each going to a separate room, but decided instead to see Lily first because she was awake.

James grinned at the sight of his sister. "Lily!"

"James! Mum! Dad!"

After being nearly tackled to death by her parents, James ran up to hug Lily, stopping only short of doing so, instead settling for a more "mature" and "masculine" handshake. He recoiled shortly after. "What happened to your hand?"

"What?" she glanced at the swollen appendage. "Oh, don't worry. It's better than it was before." Needless to say, this did little to calm her family, who quickly exchanged nervous glances. "Honest. Where's Al?"

"He's in the other room."

"Not anymore!" said Dr. Hanbury, wheeling in a familiar face into Lily's room.

Upon seeing the others, Albus sat up and began to cry. "Oh, Lily! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" He reached out to hug her.

"_You're_ sorry? Why?"

"What's going on in here?" said Rose, peeking inside the room.

"What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be having an operation?"

She shrugged. "Eh. I'm done." She held out her bandaged hand proudly. "They grafted skin on. Wanna see?"

"I'll pass."

"Rose," Harry said, "I think you're parents are looking for you."

"Not anymore. We said hello. Then, I directed Dad and Hugo to the snack machine, so they should be busy for a few hours."

"What about your Mum?"

"ROSE WEASLEY GET OVER HERE THIS INSTANT! YOU ARE IN NO SHAPE TO BE WALKING!"

Ginny smirked.

"I'll see you guys later," Rose mumbled. "I'm going to go warm me some karma points with Mum."

* * *

><p>Draco did not trust these muggle doctors. How did he know they were competent? Who knew what little training they needed to go through to get their jobs. Seeing his son hooked up to a bunch of tubes and machines did not make him feel any better about the situation.<p>

"It was a muggle search party that found him," his wife pointed out.

"After _four days._"

"He's alive, though. That's certainly something."

"Barely," he added darkly, looking at his son's unconscious body. "We need to take him to St. Mungo's. I don't trust these people, Astoria," he hissed.

"Potter won't let us. Besides, we'll be under a lot of suspicion from the muggle police if he suddenly disappears."

"I don't give a damn about the muggle pol-"

Dr. Hanbury entered the room. "Are you Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy?" he asked, already knowing the answer. They nodded. He sighed, "You two are very lucky. I don't know how he did it, but like the others, your son has made an amazingly quick recovery. Still, he was in the worst condition of the group. Scorpius just recently went under an operation to remove one of his toes and part of a second one. Still, he is expected to make a full recovery. The only permanent damage will be on his foot. Again," he shook his head, as if unbelieving, "I hope the two of you realize just how lucky you are."

"Don't worry," said Malfoy, glancing adoringly at his son, "we do."

* * *

><p>Several weeks later, Scorpius was released from the hospital and sent home before returning to school to start the term a bit late. The reunion with Calista was a bit awkward. But event hough few words were exchanged, the feeling was mutual. His sister was glad to have him back, likewise he was glad to be back.<p>

The winter incident made the news, granting Potter, Weasley, and Malfoy even more celebrity status. although the story died down soon enough, the group never grew tired of telling the tale to newcomers about their four days in H-E-double broomsticks.

The End.

* * *

><p><strong>That was fun. I think I'll write more fics about the next generation. Any ideas? Thoughts on this story? Please share.<strong>


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